The morning mist still clung to the stone paths of the Chen Estate when Wen Chen stepped into the inner training courtyard.
The air felt different today.
He noticed it immediately.
Not heavier—no. More resistant. As though the world itself had tightened around him, measuring his breath, testing his presence.
Wen Chen exhaled slowly.
"Stage 2 really doesn't want to let go," he muttered.
Across the courtyard, wooden practice dummies stood in neat rows, their surfaces already scarred by countless strikes. Several disciples were training nearby, but their movements slowed when Wen Chen arrived.
Eyes followed him.
Whispers stirred.
Since the last clan assessment, his name had stopped being spoken casually. Even Liu Wei, once loud and dismissive, now kept his distance—watching instead of provoking.
Wen Chen ignored them.
He walked to the center of the courtyard and stood still.
Then, quietly—
The panel appeared.
[Status Panel]
Name: Wen Chen
Realm: Spirit Initiate
Stage: 2
Progress: 298 / 300
Condition: Stable
Evaluation: Breakthrough resistance imminent
Two points.
Just two.
Yet those final steps felt farther than the entire road behind him.
Wen Chen closed his eyes and circulated his Qi.
The energy responded smoothly, flowing through meridians that had been tempered and refined over months of disciplined training. Every path was familiar. Every cycle precise.
But when he pushed deeper—
Resistance.
Not violent. Not abrupt.
Just… refusal.
The Qi slowed as it neared his dantian, pressing against an unseen boundary. It felt like pushing against thick, cold glass.
Wen Chen's brows knit together.
"So this is the wall."
He had read about it in clan manuals. Heard elders speak of it in vague terms. But feeling it firsthand was different.
This wasn't a lack of talent.
This was the world asking a question.
Are you worthy to go further?
Wen Chen opened his eyes.
Then he stepped forward.
"Senior Brother Wen!"
A voice called out.
He turned to see Chen Yu, a mid-ranking disciple, jogging toward him with concern written across his face.
"You've been pushing hard these past days," Chen Yu said. "If you force a breakthrough without proper preparation—"
"I know," Wen Chen replied calmly.
Chen Yu hesitated. "Then why today?"
Wen Chen looked past him, toward the distant rooftops of the estate, toward the horizon beyond the city.
"Because stopping here isn't an option."
Chen Yu fell silent.
Wen Chen gave a small nod and walked past him, heading toward the sealed cultivation chamber reserved for clan elites.
The door closed behind him with a heavy thud.
Silence swallowed the space.
The chamber was bare stone, engraved with ancient stabilizing runes. A faint warmth radiated from the walls, calming the flow of spiritual energy.
Wen Chen sat at the center and placed his palms together.
This time, he did not rush.
He guided his Qi slowly, compressing it layer by layer, refining every thread until it moved like silk under his control.
The Ancient Refining Pot stirred within his sea of consciousness.
Not power.
Stability.
It anchored his circulation, smoothing rough edges, reinforcing weak points—but it did not push him forward.
That choice remained his.
Minutes passed.
Then hours.
Sweat beaded on his forehead.
The pressure inside his dantian mounted steadily, building like a tide held back by a dam.
Crack.
A sharp pain lanced through his chest.
Wen Chen's jaw tightened.
He did not stop.
His breathing deepened, slow and controlled, as he forced the compressed Qi to rotate faster—tighter—denser.
The resistance pushed back.
Harder.
Blood seeped from his lips.
His vision wavered.
Now.
He shifted the flow.
Instead of pressing forward, he folded inward, circulating the energy through his core in a complex spiral pattern he had perfected through countless refinements.
The chamber trembled faintly.
The pressure peaked.
Then—
Shattered.
The invisible wall broke apart like thin ice under a hammer.
A surge of refined Qi exploded outward, flooding his meridians with overwhelming force. His bones rang. His blood roared.
Wen Chen gasped as the energy reshaped his inner pathways, expanding his dantian, reinforcing his foundation.
Pain.
Then clarity.
The Qi settled.
The chamber fell silent once more.
Wen Chen opened his eyes.
Golden light flickered before him.
[Status Panel]
Name: Wen Chen
Realm: Spirit Initiate
Stage: 3
Progress: 0 / 400
Condition: Meridians reforged
Evaluation: Successful breakthrough
Wen Chen exhaled slowly.
Stage 3.
He clenched his fist.
Power surged effortlessly at his command, purer and denser than before. His senses sharpened. He could feel the flow of spiritual energy in the chamber, in the stone, even beyond the walls.
He stood.
The door opened.
Outside, the courtyard had gathered.
When Wen Chen stepped out, the air shifted.
Disciples froze mid-training.
Chen Yu's eyes widened.
Liu Wei, standing near the edge, stiffened—his pupils shrinking as he instinctively sensed the change.
Wen Chen met his gaze calmly.
Nothing was said.
Nothing needed to be.
The distance between them had grown.
And everyone could feel it.