"Oh... Oh."
Lian coughed up water, his lungs burning as he opened his eyes. He lay on the cold, damp riverbed, the moonlight illuminating the trees above him.
I almost died, he thought, his heart still racing.
He turned his hand over to look at the jade, but it was nowhere to be seen.
"No... Where is it?" he muttered, searching around himself. It was now dark, the only light coming from the moon and stars, yet his eyes were strangely sharp; he could see as if it were day.
What's going on? My body feels so light, he wondered, walking to the water's edge. He then saw his reflection.
"What?"
His dark hair had stretched down past his face, and though he had been training for a long time, his muscles were now more defined, and his height had increased a little.
"Is... this a body transformation?" he spoke, inspecting his body in the water.
He closed his eyes and began inspecting his core. He found himself walking in a dark, narrow pathway, finally reaching a massive, great wall—one he had seen before.
"What? The wall has cracks!" he thought, placing his hand on the wall. Suddenly, from his palm, a lotus began to form, bearing the same inscription that was on the Jade.
Does this mean the Jade has merged with my body? Just as his thoughts were running wild, the wall broke before him, and a rush of wind flew toward him.
...
"I finally broke through after so long," Lian thought to himself. "Finally, I can now cultivate."
Lian then spent the rest of the night seated cross-legged, cultivating his core energy. Recalling the sutra he heard while drowning, he began to cultivate at a faster rate than he had ever done before, and in no time at all, he broke through the third rate, then the fourth.
When he opened his eyes, he felt incredible strength emanating from himself.
"I wonder how strong I have gotten," he thought, standing up and walking toward a great plum tree. He clenched his fist and struck it.
Thud!
A large impact echoed as his hand went straight through the trunk and appeared on the other side of the tree. The leaves shook wildly, and a single plum fell, hitting him on the head.
"Ouch...hahahah..." He laughed aloud. "Amazing... But this is crazy! My body has this much strength without me using any chi? I couldn't even make the tree shake before."
"I wonder what would happen if I tried channeling chi into my fist."
Lian closed his eyes and focused all his chi energy into his fist. A golden light formed around his hand, and he threw the punch. There was so much force that three trees in front of him were instantly destroyed—nothing was left but dust.
"Ah... is this truly my strength?" he yelled, surprised by his own power.
"Huuu." It's already morning, he thought, looking up.
"Ah... there's a foul smell here. Where is it coming from?" His eyes darted around.
"Yark! It's me!" He laughed as he dove back into the water, quickly washing himself. He then put on his blue garments, which were now a little too small for his body.
I should go change and start cleaning before I get in trouble.
He stood up and began rushing. Each step left a great dent in the earth as he breezed by like an uncontrollable wind. He dashed until he reached his family compound, escaping the guards' gaze by using a secret tunnel at the back.
He reached his small bamboo house and began looking for clothes that might fit his size. He searched and searched but couldn't find any. He then turned to a wooden box where his father's old garments were kept.
There he found them: grand garments of black and white. One robe had a drawing of a golden dragon that stretched all the way across it.
He then tied his wild hair into a neat ponytail.
His appearance was dashing, like some prince of a great dynasty.
It took Lian one-tenth of his usual time to finish all the chores of the compound. He then rushed and walked towards the main pavilion.
"I don't think I have to tell you the family rules, but only people who have broken through the third stage of the human layer are allowed here."
"Yes, I know, Elder," Lian replied. "But I have broken through..."
"What? You? Stop wasting my time and go back to doing your chores!"
"But Elder... Ahhh!"
The suffocating pressure of the Elder's Martial Intent slammed into Lian. It should have crippled him, but a fiery warmth—the residue of the Jade—flared in his core, absorbing the impact.
Lian hit the stone floor, but before the dust could even settle, he was already back on his feet. He met the Elder's surprised eyes with a chilling, dead stare.
"I told you," the Elder roared. "This pavilion is no place for trash like you!"
Lian stood up quickly, dusting himself off, one hand open-palmed and the other clenched into a fist. He then took a respectful bow, but his eyes were sharp and cold—a detail that caused the Elder to flinch slightly.
"I understand now, Elder," Lian said, his voice quiet. "Despite all my effort in this family, I will always be a failure. I have learned my lesson." Lian turned and began walking away.
The Elder watched him, a flicker of fear crossing his face. What... he stood up too quickly. I pressured him with the strength of a half-step Human Layer, but he stood up like nothing happened... and those eyes of his... Mmm... I may have messed up here. For him to break through to the Fourth Layer in a single night, I might have just provoked a sleeping dragon. The Elder thought as he watched Lian walk away, a heavy silence falling over the pavilion.