Training began before sunrise.
Instructor Chen Qingsong stood before the six newcomers.
"Show me the first movement of your foundational techniques."
Chen Shun went first.
His Nether Emperor Lance was incomplete, but the structure was clean.
Chen Xueyin's Phantom Wind Dodge showed instinct but lacked refinement.
Chen Lanyue managed to summon only part of a stone arm through Golem Invocation.
Chen Yiru erased the sound of two steps using Echoless Ghost Drift.
Chen Gao smashed a training block with brute force.
Chen Qingsong stared at the broken stone.
"That was not Ninefold Tyrant Breaker."
Chen Gao frowned.
"I broke it."
"You already knew how to hit things."
Then came Chen Ba.
He removed the Black Pole from his back.
Thunder God's Three Steps existed clearly in his mind.
But knowledge and execution were different things.
Qi gathered in his calves.
He moved.
The Black Pole did not.
Its weight dragged behind him, twisting his balance.
Chen Ba stumbled.
He tried again.
Worse.
On the third attempt, he fell.
Chen Zhenkai laughed from the senior training area.
Chen Qingsong ignored him.
He lifted the Black Pole himself, tested its weight, then put it down.
"It does not cooperate with your Qi."
Chen Ba stood.
"No."
"It doesn't lighten."
"No."
"It doesn't accelerate with you."
"No."
Chen Qingsong looked at him.
"Then stop expecting it to help."
He pointed at an open stretch of training ground.
"Put it down."
Chen Ba did.
"First Step."
"No weapon."
"No speed."
"Only movement."
Chen Ba frowned.
"The First Step isn't fixed to one direction?"
Chen Qingsong shook his head.
"Of course not."
"Lightning does not ask permission before changing direction."
"The First Step is explosive displacement."
"Forward. Backward. Left. Right. Diagonal."
"What matters is whether your body can change direction before your opponent understands where you're going."
That changed everything.
For the next several days, Chen Ba trained only the First Step.
Without the pole, progress came slowly but clearly.
With it, everything became harder.
The weapon's weight slowed his acceleration, and Qi circulation became uneven whenever he tried to include the pole within the movement.
So Chen Qingsong forced him to separate the technique.
Train movement first.
Carry the burden second.
Do not confuse the two.
Chen Ba's progress remained slow.
He did not reach Level Four.
He did not master the First Step.
He did not unlock anything from the Black Pole.
He merely stopped falling.
That was enough.
A few days later, the six entered the Achievement Hall.
Their tokens all displayed the same number.
0.
The clerk handed them basic induction assignments.
Chen Ba received a Northern Spring supply run.
Three sealed jars of water.
Carry them uphill before noon.
Spirit Item must remain with the disciple.
Reward: fifteen points.
The others received similar duties.
At the Northern Spring, Chen Ba immediately understood the problem.
His Black Pole was heavier than everyone else's Spirit Item combined.
He could carry the jars.
He could carry the pole.
Carrying both efficiently was another matter.
Chen Shun completed the task first.
Chen Ba arrived last.
But all three jars were intact.
The clerk updated his token.
Total Achievement: 15
Available Achievement: 15
Chen Ba stared at the number.
Ten thousand suddenly felt very far away.
Beside him, Chen Shun said, "You were last."
"Yes."
"I was first."
"Yes."
"Tomorrow I'll be first again."
Chen Ba looked at him.
"Probably."
Chen Shun frowned.
"You don't care?"
"I care."
"Then why probably?"
"Because today you were faster."
Chen Shun considered the answer.
Then nodded once.
"Good."
He walked away.
There was no insult.
No hostility.
Only a line drawn quietly between them.
That evening, Chen Ba returned to training.
He removed the Black Pole.
Breathed.
Then moved.
Backward.
Stop.
Forward-right.
Stop.
Left.
Stop.
The First Step was not a pattern.
It was a decision.
He repeated the movements until his calves burned.
Then he strapped the Black Pole back on.
Everything became slower.
Again.
Backward.
The pole pulled.
Recover.
Diagonal.
His Qi circulation broke halfway through.
Again.
Sideways.
Better.
Again.
A faint spark snapped around his ankle.
Then vanished.
Chen Ba stopped.
One spark.
Nothing more.
Chen Qingsong, watching from nearby, said, "Don't chase the lightning."
Chen Ba looked at him.
"Then what am I chasing?"
"Control."
The instructor pointed at the Black Pole.
"That weapon is already slowing you."
"If you depend on its cooperation, you'll remain slow."
"So learn to move even when it refuses."
Chen Ba looked at the pole.
Heavy.
Silent.
Unresponsive.
Fine.
The following morning, new missions appeared on the Achievement Board.
Some could be completed alone.
Others recommended two or three disciples.
A team mission's reward would be divided among participants.
That immediately changed how the six looked at the board.
A mission worth ninety points meant ninety points alone.
Forty-five each for two.
Thirty each for three.
Safety had a price.
So did speed.
Three suitable missions stood out.
Greenmist Herb Survey — 80 Achievement Points
Survey eight designated herb plots along the outer region of Greenmist Valley. Record abnormalities and return with the required samples.
Low combat risk.
Solo completion permitted.
Stonebridge Village Delivery — 100 Achievement Points
Deliver medicine, grain and several sealed clan packages to Stonebridge Village.
Southern road has reported occasional wild beasts and thieves.
One to two disciples recommended.
North Quarry Trace Investigation — 150 Achievement Points
Investigate unusual tracks around the abandoned northern quarry.
Determine number, direction and likely origin.
Do not engage unknown threats unnecessarily.
Two to four disciples recommended.
Chen Gao immediately looked at the quarry.
Chen Yiru looked at him.
"No."
"I haven't said anything."
"You were about to."
Chen Lanyue's attention remained on Greenmist Valley.
Her Verdant Listening Vessel gave a faint vibration.
Chen Shun studied the rewards instead.
Chen Xueyin read the mission requirements carefully.
For the first time since entering the Outer Court, the six did not automatically stand as one group.
Different missions suited different people.
Different risks offered different rewards.
And ten thousand points could not be reached by always choosing the safest road.
Chen Ba adjusted the Black Pole across his shoulders.
Fifteen points.
Qi Initiate Level Three.
An incomplete First Step.
A Spirit Item that made him slower.
That was where his Outer Court journey truly began.