Mediocre Aptitude

"This, Elder Liu. Could you reconsider..." Wu Xu grew anxious at once. "No need to say more. I understand what you mean." The old man waved a hand to cut him off again. "How about this? Let the boy enter the outer sect to study first. If his aptitude for cultivating outer force is also quite good, his strength will surely rise greatly. Two years from now, he will also have a strong chance of being selected in the outer sect disciples' promotion examination for the inner court. Rest assured, this boy's circumstances are special and will not affect the rewards issued to you two."

Wu Xu was overjoyed upon hearing this. "Many thanks, Deacon Liu!" His earlier display had been precisely for this. The sect's rules stipulated that if one could discover, during assessment, a disciple capable of entering the inner court directly, one would receive generous rewards, such as pills, cultivation methods, materials, treasured swords, and so on. This way, even if Chen Fan only entered the outer sect, it would not affect the rewards for the two of them. Their trip had not been in vain.

"Junior Nephew Chen, you heard it as well. For now, this is the only way. Settle down and cultivate in the outer sect first. I think highly of you!" He patted Chen Fan's shoulder, then headed back down the mountain to continue assessing the others.

The room was dimly lit. Chen Fan sat cross-legged on his bed, cultivating quietly. At that moment, he was circulating the latter sections of the Golden Wheel Scripture.

This was already Chen Fan's seventh day after entering the outer sect. After Wu Xu left that day, Deacon Liu arranged for him to settle down in the outer sect. Once Chen Fan entered the main complex of Swordcry Mountain, he was utterly stunned. The sect had been built among several mountain peaks, with the main peak at its center and four peaks standing in sequence on either side. The five peaks enclosed the entire main complex of the sect, a work of divine craftsmanship, magnificent and majestic. As for the living and cultivation areas for outer sect disciples, apart from areas belonging to the inner court such as the High Heaven Palace, Sword-Riding Pavilion, and Sword Heart Hall, which they were forbidden from entering, there were no restrictions elsewhere. The sect had nearly a thousand registered outer sect disciples, but not all of them lived within the sect. After entering the outer sect, aside from several fixed group lessons and sparring sessions each month, they could travel outside at any other time and enter or leave the sect freely, though they still had to abide by the sect's curfew.

In truth, this was because the sect did not place much importance on most outer sect disciples. Just imagine it: if those talented disciples were allowed to come and go from the mountain gates as they pleased, not only would it affect their cultivation progress, but they would also easily face mortal danger. The sect's losses would be immense.

Ten days after that day, recruitment ended. Only a little over seventy new disciples met the requirements, and the sect selected another fifteen replacements from among those waiting. They had not truly recruited a full hundred people. Better to lack than to accept indiscriminately; the sect was not a shelter.

Chen Fan's residence, along with those of all the new disciples, was arranged on the side peak farthest from the main peak. Afterward, instructors responsible for teaching gave them a basic introduction to the sect's knowledge and rules. Over the next few days, several instructors for the three main categories of cultivation methods each taught their first lesson. They distributed outer sect disciple uniforms and cultivation methods to everyone, then gave a round of urging and encouraging speeches. All in all, the entire process was somewhat perfunctory. Finally, they informed everyone that the first and middle days of every month were the designated days for group lessons, answering questions, and sparring exchanges, which they could attend according to their own needs.

After that, everyone began doing as they pleased. Some disciples from noble families and Aristocratic Clans donned their sect uniforms and went down the mountain to show off at home. Some had traveled thousands of miles to reach the mountain and were obviously exhausted, so they buried their heads and went to sleep. Others formed groups and began touring the mountain scenery...

Chen Fan, meanwhile, began studying on his own. Among the cultivation methods issued by the sect, there were three books each for outer force, inner qi, and Soaring. It had to be said, great sects were indeed generous. Though the two outer force and inner qi cultivation methods were not Swordcry Mountain's traditional arts, they still ranked among the better low-tier methods. The Soaring cultivation methods, meanwhile, contained only superficial knowledge, since presumably no one would specialize in studying them.

Within a few rounds of breathing and exhalation, Chen Fan cultivated the Golden Wheel Scripture from beginning to end once more. Gradually, more of his memories returned. Over the past few days, as he continuously cultivated the Golden Wheel Scripture, Chen Fan's memories had slowly recovered as well. At this moment, seven or eight parts out of ten had returned. It would have been better if they had not returned. Once they did, Chen Fan could not help feeling speechless. The first fifteen years of his life could be summed up in two words: bleak and dreary.

Ever since he could remember, he had lived in Golden Wheel Temple and had never left that small mountain peak. Perhaps it was because his abbot master, the old monk who had brought him into the temple, worried about his safety. From childhood, that old monk had taught him the methods of martial cultivation. Like all the senior brothers in the temple, day after day, year after year, his life was almost nothing but eating, sleeping, meditating, and cultivating. There were no entertainments, and he had never learned of the dazzling affairs beyond the mountains. Everything he knew of the world had come from his other senior brothers and his master. At the same time, his master had been especially strict with him, personally guiding him in both martial cultivation and all kinds of cultural knowledge. Clearly, he alone had been entrusted with great expectations. Could I be this old monk's illegitimate son? His master had also told him that once he cultivated inner qi, outer force, or Soaring to the third level, he would take him down the mountain for training. Then one day, the old monk said he was leaving on a journey and never returned... until, one day later, calamity descended.

Those memories were indeed far too monotonous, but recovering them was still a good thing. In fact, after Chen Fan began studying and cultivating on his own a few days ago, the first thing he comprehended and practiced was the inner qi cultivation method issued by the sect: the Qi Condensation Art. This was also a method that could be cultivated to the third level, and for new disciples, it was an exceptionally good cultivation method. After all, not everyone had the same "family fortune" as Chen Fan.

After he devoted himself to comprehending and cultivating it for a full day and night, he discovered that compared with the Golden Wheel Scripture, the Qi Condensation Art was indeed more suited to supporting outer force sword techniques. According to its method, after drawing qi into the body and circulating it throughout his body, more of the heaven-and-earth vital energy gathered in his forearms, wrists, finger joints, and even flowed into the soles of his feet. After cultivating the Golden Wheel Scripture, however, it tended more toward his upper arms, shoulders, back, waist, hips, thighs, and other such areas. This should have been the difference created to complement different outer force cultivation methods. It was exceedingly profound.

However, Chen Fan also discovered something quite strange. Though the outer force cultivation methods suited to these two cultivation arts differed, both were low-tier methods capable of reaching the third level. In theory, there should not have been much difference in cultivation difficulty, the speed at which qi was drawn into the body, the purity of vital energy, or the effects of the circulation cycle. Yet when he cultivated the Golden Wheel Scripture, it was like drifting clouds and flowing water, completed in one smooth breath. After circulating it through his body, he felt his blood and qi brimming, all fatigue gone, as though he had reached the peak of his condition. Under the same circumstances, when cultivating the Qi Condensation Art, he could also circulate it completely without error, but Chen Fan clearly felt that its breathing speed, vital energy purity, and effects after circulation were worlds apart from the Golden Wheel Scripture.

At first, he believed it was because he had cultivated the Golden Wheel Scripture since childhood. But over the next two days, after fully comprehending the first half of the Qi Condensation Art, he repeatedly compared it with the Golden Wheel Scripture. The first half of the Qi Condensation Art corresponded to the first and second levels of inner qi. Logically speaking, even if his proficiency was not as high, merely in terms of the first level's cultivation effects, there should not have been such a great difference between the two methods. Yet the truth remained the same. No matter how many times he cultivated the Qi Condensation Art, the speed and effect of its vital energy circulation could no longer improve. The gap between it and the Golden Wheel Scripture was still as vast as heaven and earth.

Chen Fan pondered for a long time. Could the Golden Wheel Scripture be some special treasure canon? Could it even be a mid-tier or high-tier cultivation method? But he quickly rejected this idea. Setting aside the fact that the three seniors had each tested him when he entered the sect, if he had been cultivating a mid-tier or high-tier method, they would already have thoroughly investigated it. Furthermore, over the past two days, he had separately used the two inner qi methods to empower his sword while performing ordinary outer force moves. He found that the difference in power was slight, and using the Qi Condensation Art even allowed him to exert force more freely. This was enough to show that the two cultivation methods were indeed of comparable rank, and that their overall effects when releasing outer force after cultivation were nearly identical. Both were unquestionably low-tier methods.

Then the variable could only lie within himself. Chen Fan was greatly perplexed. Cultivating the Golden Wheel Scripture was simply faster and better for him than cultivating the Qi Condensation Art. Though he could not figure it out no matter how hard he thought, for now, that was all there was to it. Moreover, he decided to make use of this advantage. He might as well abandon the Qi Condensation Art and continue cultivating the Golden Wheel Scripture until his inner qi fully reached the third level, then focus wholeheartedly on cultivating outer force. Though cultivating multiple methods at once could usually improve one's strength more effectively, the results would not be too obvious at his current stage. It was better to cultivate the Golden Wheel Scripture to the third level as soon as possible, thereby saving much unnecessary time.

To enter the inner court, he had to pass the outer sect disciples' promotion examination two years from now. Rapidly raising his cultivation was of the utmost importance, and time was precious. As long as his inner qi reached the third level, he believed it could fully make up for the Golden Wheel Scripture's unsuitability for sword use. After all, it was almost impossible for anyone among the outer sect disciples to cultivate to the third level. During sparring, when outer force was displayed, one could basically not distinguish the inner qi cultivation method used, nor was there any need to investigate it. Besides, the sect had never prohibited cultivating other methods. There was another very important point as well: Chen Fan recognized his own ability. If not for cultivating the Golden Wheel Scripture, his talent would have been merely ordinary. His cultivation speed with other methods was only average, and even that was due to the experience he had accumulated from cultivating since childhood.

Thus, he began cultivating the Golden Wheel Scripture with all his might. Finally, on some night, he somehow opened another meridian, completely recovering his memories...

More than ten days passed after that. Chen Fan spent most of his time in his own room, keeping his door shut and never going out. Aside from cultivating the Golden Wheel Scripture, he also began studying the Poison Arts Treasure Record.

Gradually, he gained a slight grasp of the Poison Arts Treasure Record. Besides methods for preparing certain poisons and antidotes, he spent a great deal of time and effort identifying the various plant and animal materials recorded in the treasure record, learning how to combine them for poisoning, healing toxins, and other uses. Though after many days he had memorized several hundred types of materials and their functions, knowledge gained from books always felt shallow in the end. When he had the chance, he would have to put it into practice and see the results for himself.

A few more days passed, and the first day of the month arrived. Early that morning, just as Chen Fan put away the Golden Wheel Scripture he had cultivated all night, he suddenly heard someone knocking on his door. When he opened it, a smiling face appeared before him. The person said, "Junior Brother Chen, today is the first day of the month, our fixed monthly lesson day. This morning, an instructor will teach swordsmanship. We are all already impatient with anticipation. Does Junior Brother Chen wish to go with us early and claim a good spot?"

The one speaking was the young man who had questioned Li Hui at the foot of the mountain, Murong Zhu. After the recruitment period ended last month, he had indeed entered the outer sect as a replacement. Several of those gathered outside the mountain gate at the time had been selected with him, all disciples from noble families or Aristocratic Clans. Li Hui had not deliberately made things difficult for him because of his rude words. This was enough to prove that Swordcry Mountain, as a great sect, would never engage in favoritism and malpractice over such a trivial matter. Afterward, he quickly hit it off with several disciples of similar age and cultivation level. As he was older, he vaguely carried himself like an elder brother. Soon after entering the sect, he found Chen Fan and chatted with him for a while, his attitude so warm it was almost excessive. They could be considered acquainted. A joke? He knew about Chen Fan's terrifying hidden strength. If he did not try to befriend someone like that, he would be an idiot.

Though Chen Fan did not wish to become entangled in too many worldly affairs and personal relationships, Murong Zhu was, on the whole, straightforward and outspoken. His character was not bad, and he did not possess the excessive airs of a great family's young master. Perhaps it was because he placed importance on Chen Fan. Besides, Swordcry Mountain was a place where crouching tigers and hidden dragons abounded; noble family and Aristocratic Clan disciples like them were nothing special here. Chen Fan also had quite a bit of affinity with him. They interacted from time to time, so they were no longer strangers.

"Senior Brother Murong truly seems to have a deep fondness for swordsmanship. I too would like to broaden my horizons, so I shall go with all the senior brothers." After many days of bitter cultivation and contemplation, Chen Fan had also been wanting to go out for a walk. Since today happened to be a lesson day, he would go listen. Perhaps he would gain much from it.

Behind Murong Zhu stood more than ten young disciples. A few of them looked somewhat familiar; they should all have been among those who entered the outer sect as replacements outside the mountain gate that day. They were all older than Chen Fan, so he addressed them all as senior brothers.

Among the group, several glanced at Chen Fan with friendliness in their eyes and nodded slightly. Most of the others were indifferent and somewhat cold. Clearly, few people knew of Chen Fan's assessment process. Thus, the group chatted and laughed as they headed toward the outer sect's martial arts arena.