'Even with the Blood Oath, I'm still at a disadvantage with Jiang He,' Su Chen thought on his way back.
'If I could find a way to get out of this, or find a backer of my own, things would be much simpler... Key cultivation...'
'If I reveal that I'm already a Professional... No, there would be too much to explain. It might cause even more trouble.'
Jiang He moved fast. By the time Su Chen reached the cafeteria, he found that money had already been added to his student ID—100 Gold Coins.
That wasn't a small amount. In the past, Su Chen had to work for ten days just to earn a single Gold Coin.
But it wasn't a lot, either. A single tube of that compressed Nutrient Liquid cost 15 Gold Coins.
'This is too expensive... Bai Fengxi was pretty decent, after all...' Su Chen hesitated. With his high-intensity training, this stuff would only keep him from going hungry for a day or two.
'Forget it. The whole point is to not go hungry.' No longer hesitating, Su Chen paid at the counter, took six tubes, stuffed them into his coat, and headed straight back to his dorm.
After drinking a Nutrient Liquid, Su Chen first crushed the token Qi Chuan had given him.
Then he started training immediately. He trained until he was completely exhausted, then worked on developing his spirit. He pushed himself to the absolute limit, not wanting to move an inch once he lay down on his bed.
...
"So he really does know."
In a lavishly decorated room, Qi Chuan looked at the equally shattered Card in his hand, a strange smile crossing his face.
"What do you plan to do... Are you really going to put him on the special cultivation list?" a deep voice asked. Qi Chuan's expression hardened as he looked at the imposing middle-aged man before him and nodded slightly. "That would be giving him too much credit. He's just a low-class refugee."
"My arrangements that day should have been foolproof. I can't make any more plans until I figure out what exactly happened. Since he almost certainly knows something, we can just grab him and torture it out of him."
"He's in the academy," the other person emphasized.
"In about ten days, he'll have to leave the city," Qi Chuan said with a smile.
"It seems you've already thought it through." The other person nodded slowly, his voice growing heavy. "Handle it as soon as possible. Southwind only gets one spot each year. It will be decided in another six months, and I don't want any accidents."
"You can rest assured," Qi Chuan said hurriedly.
...
Three days passed in a flash. Su Chen had crushed Qi Chuan's token long ago, but he still hadn't heard from the man.
'Only four more payments on the Warrior loan...' Su Chen let out a long breath and looked at his panel.
[Warrior: 6%]
[Candle Fire Spirit Training Method—Mastery: 25%]
The time requirement for [Scholar] was down to one year. Su Chen estimated that in just a few more days, he would be able to take on this special Professional class.
'It's less than ten days until I have to leave the city...' Su Chen calculated the days. 'What's the "victim" playing at? Is he just going to ignore this, or is he...'
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
A knock sounded at the door. Su Chen was surprised. 'What a coincidence. Speak of the devil...'
The person at the door looked somewhat familiar. He held his head high and had a decent appearance.
"Is someone looking for me downstairs?" he asked tentatively.
Zhou Zhong frowned slightly and emphasized, "I'm looking for you."
"You?" Su Chen was surprised and studied the other man closely. "Have we met somewhere before?"
Zhou Zhong said flatly, "I've seen your file. A low-class refugee who got into Southwind Academy by luckily climbing into Jiang He's bed."
"How long do you think Jiang He's novelty interest in you will last?"
"Oh, I remember now. You know Bai Fengxi, right?" Su Chen finally recalled.
'So he's probably not one of Qi Chuan's men. What's this guy here for?'
Zhou Zhong said calmly, "Aren't you going to invite me in to sit down?"
"It's messy inside. If you have something to say, just say it here," Su Chen said, shaking his head.
Zhou Zhong was displeased. "I came to give you an opportunity."
"What kind of opportunity?" Su Chen asked, looking at him.
"A real chance to turn your life around," Zhou Zhong said with a small smile. "All you have to do is tell me everything you know about Bai Fengxi, down to the last detail..."
SLAM!
The door in front of him was slammed shut. Zhou Zhong's smile froze on his face as he faintly heard the other person's voice drift through the door—'...what an idiot...'
A vein throbbed on Zhou Zhong's forehead, and his face turned black with rage.
"Someone's after Bai Fengxi?" Su Chen muttered to himself. "Is he trying to hit on her, or scheme against her?"
'Oh well, I'll let her know the next time I see her.'
Su Chen didn't pay it much mind, continuing to mull over the "victim's" situation while he went on with his training.
In the mid-afternoon, the door was knocked on again. This time, it was Jiang He.
"Isn't this the men's dormitory?" Su Chen asked as he let her in. She was once again dressed in her sexy teacher's outfit.
"Who here wouldn't welcome me?" Jiang He retorted. She glanced around the room, sat casually on the bed, and crossed her legs. "Has Qi Chuan come to see you?"
"Not yet," Su Chen said, shaking his head.
"It's been three days," Jiang He said, looking at Su Chen suspiciously.
"I crushed the token a long time ago." Su Chen took out the Card, which was wrapped in a tissue.
"Wind Letter Paper..." Jiang He nodded, but was still confused. "If that's the case, why hasn't he come? Was he delayed by something?"
"I don't know." Su Chen shook his head and simply held out his hand. "The thing I asked for."
Jiang He hesitated for a moment before pulling a thin book from her small bag and handing it to Su Chen. "An F-level Refining Technique. It should be enough for you."
[Molten Stone Refining Technique]. The large characters on the cover made Su Chen's heart skip a beat.
Training Techniques were graded from low to high using standards like F, E, and so on. Although this was the lowest grade, it was genuinely used by Professionals.
Something like [Candle Fire], on the other hand, wasn't even tiered.
"Wait for him to find you." Jiang He was about to leave when Su Chen stopped her. "Add some more money."
He said it with such entitlement that Jiang He retorted irritably, "Getting addicted to being a freeloader? I'll add another 100. If you run out of money, figure it out yourself."
"Or... you could beg me?" Jiang He suddenly gave him a seductive smile.
"I'm begging you," Su Chen said, his face expressionless.
Jiang He's expression stiffened. "You're no fun," she said coldly.
She didn't return to her office. Instead, she walked out of the school under the gazes of passersby, heading deeper into the city.
...
"Father..." Jiang He asked the white-haired old man before her, confused. "Qi Chuan hasn't looked for Su Chen since then. What do you think is going on?"
The old man's face was lined with deep wrinkles, but his spirit was vigorous and his eyes glinted. "He hasn't?"
After a brief silence, he couldn't help but praise, "As expected of my good son-in-law. We were trying to bait him, but it seems he's baited us instead."
"What do you mean?" Jiang He asked, not understanding.
"In Qi Chuan's eyes, what kind of person is Su Chen?" the old man asked in return.
Jiang He didn't react at first, but the old man slowly explained, "A low-class refugee. A lucky boy who managed to climb into his wife's bed. Perhaps a little clever, but that's it."
"For someone like that, if he wants to know something, why would he put him on a special cultivation list? As long as he's sure Su Chen has information, taking direct action is the simplest and most straightforward method."
"In ten days, Su Chen has to leave the city."
Jiang He mulled it over for a moment before it dawned on her, her expression turning cold. "He had it all planned from the start. His previous contact was just a probe."
"Then... doesn't that mean I gave Su Chen that thing for nothing?"
The old man sighed. "Don't get hung up on that little thing. The trouble now is that Su Chen is leaving the city and we can't stop him. Your Blood Oath Contract hasn't been broken yet. You have ten days to advance to Secret Scholar as quickly as possible."
Jiang He's face paled, but she said, "But Qi Chuan doesn't know Su Chen is already a Warrior."
The old man shook his head. "Just a Tier One Warrior. Knowing Qi Chuan's personality, he's probably made multiple preparations."
He paused, then added, "However, this might also be an opportunity."
...
In his dorm room, Su Chen was studying the [Molten Stone Refining Technique].
This Training Technique wasn't profound. It just used a special method to make one's blood circulate at high speed, thereby stimulating the body from within to achieve the effect of Body Refining.