Fifteen Percent Wasn't Enough!

It was already early December.

The Black Tortoise Hall's main chamber was packed. Disciples from the Meridian Opening realm to the Qi Condensation Initial Stage had come. Zhou Zhong sat near the front, and for once, Ye An had not missed the lecture.

Shi Jian sat above them. His aged voice was neither loud nor soft, but rustled like leaves stirring on a branch.

Shi Jian spoke unhurriedly about the finer points of cultivation, explaining every step in detail, from the easily overlooked details of circulating True Essence to the state of mind needed to break through a bottleneck.

Now and then, Shi Jian paused to look at the disciples below, checking whether they understood.

Ye An sat in the back. Too much had happened lately: studying the martial arts of other halls, the Song Family affair, the Secret Cache. One thing had followed another.

It had been a long time since Ye An had sat down to hear Shi Jian teach. Now, he simply listened in silence.

Zhou Zhong, who had been sitting near the front, suddenly rose and walked to the back. He settled beside Ye An.

A teasing note entered Zhou Zhong's voice. "Well, look who's here. I thought you'd forgotten the way to Black Tortoise Hall."

"Don't make fun of me, Chief Disciple."

Zhou Zhong laughed, though not too loudly.

When Zhou Zhong spoke again, his tone was much more serious.

"Honestly, I've heard so many stories about you lately that my ears are nearly calloused. You stormed the Hanging Sword Sect alone, beat Zhao Yuanling, intercepted and killed Song Yuanshan, and even slew two protectors of the Heaven Overturning Cult along the way."

"As for me, being Chief Disciple..."

Zhou Zhong left the sentence unfinished, but his meaning was clear. He felt he no longer