Within the Misty Cloud Sect, night lay like a heavy sheet of black silk, shrouding the quiet Disciple Dormitory completely.
The moon rose above the treetops, its clear light like a thin veil drifting gently through the window, tracing patches of silver light and shadow across the floor.
"Phew."
Xiao Qian lay quietly on the bed and slowly opened his eyes.
He blinked a few times, his eyes still clouded with the drowsiness of someone just waking from a deep sleep.
Then he gently exhaled a breath of scorching air, carrying the peculiar languor and weariness of someone newly awakened.
"I actually knocked myself unconscious. That was... exhilarating! Hahaha!"
As though suddenly engulfed by a tide of memories, Xiao Qian recalled the gripping, heart-stopping hunting battle, and a hearty, unrestrained grin instantly spread across his face.
As he spoke, he abruptly sat up, moving forcefully but forgetting how weak his body was.
The instant he moved, it felt as though countless steel needles had pierced his head at once. A dizzying sensation sent the world spinning, as if countless little hammers were pounding madly inside his skull.
The weakness felt like the aftermath of several days and nights of wild revelry that had drained every last drop of vitality from his body, nearly sending him toppling back onto the bed.
Yet he soon keenly sensed something unusual within him.
The Dou Qi in his body was now surging through his meridians like a mighty river flowing without end.
Wherever the Dou Qi passed, it was as though a spring breeze swept across the earth, leaving his entire body feeling wonderfully clear. Every pore breathed freely, like parched land drinking in a long-awaited rain.
The comfort and exhilaration were beyond description, as though every cell in his body were cheering with