The sky was not yet bright, and the sun had yet to rise. In the east, rays of light just began to show themselves, the dark colors in the sky slowly fading away, the smell of the night still remaining in the air.
In the northeast of the disciples' district, the door of a house was suddenly swung open, hitting loudly against the wall on the other side, as Fang Jishen stepped out of his house.
He wore a wide smile and his face was flushed red, his entire being brimmed with excitement. The air was freezing outside, but he didn't feel the slightest cold rush; his heart was full of surging enthusiasm.
He left his garden with quick steps and walked swiftly on the streets of the Tiger Martial Institute.
"For nearly seven months, I cultivated bitterly at home, even cutting my sleep short at times. I used all my economies and even borrowed 100 gold coins from my family, and now finally I have successfully attained the 7th layer of the Qi Gathering Realm. I am a rank 3 talent and I worked hard all this time, Ye Mo should still be in the low levels of the Qi Gathering Realm, he can't compare to me!"
Fang Jishen felt joy and pride. Cultivation takes time, but after spending his wealth on some resources to accelerate the process, combined with his rank 3 talent, he was able to breakthrough after months of dedication.
It is said rivalry and competition push youngsters to surpass themselves. In his will to come back at Ye Mo, Fang Jishen persevered in his cultivation and used his agitated emotions as drive to finally attain the 7th layer.
When he thought about it, he couldn't remember a time when he cultivated this hard in the past.
"Just you wait Ye Mo, once I find you, I will beat you to the ground until you can't even look at me in the eyes. This humiliation you made me endure, I will repay it tenfold!"
The more he thought about it, the more excited he grew. He could not help but clench his fists, and his pace quickened a little more as he went towards Ye Mo's house.
Among all the students of the Tiger Martial Institute, he was one of the two who knew of its location.
In the past, he was caught unprepared, but this time he would attack first! With his 7th layer cultivation, surely Ye Mo won't stand a chance.
Although it wasn't day yet, the students of the institute numbered in the thousands, and there would always be a few you would come across on the streets at all times.
This moment didn't make an exception as Fang Jishen passed by several small groups. As they went by, he could hear all kinds of discussions quickly fading in the distance.
One of them was seemingly talking about the difficulty of obtaining high-level martial arts, another speculated on Shen Xue's true strength.
There was also a student supported by his friend, his eyes half-closed and his steps unsteady. He was manifestly heavily drunk and stood in a semi-conscious state, nearly falling multiple times, but his friend grabbed him by the waist and passed his arm over his shoulders, making sure he stood away from harm.
The third group gossiped on Li Qiang's last actions, "He was so angry after his conversation with Yan Mei that he went up to the third floor of the pagoda. It's been a week now, and he's still cultivating."
One student jeered as he immediately rebutted, "You're not very well-informed here. He was angry because he couldn't catch the kid, or else why would he bring his mob of Li clan members, these guys would be useless against Yan Mei."
"Oh, you're talking about Ye Mo? To think he was able to defeat 8th layer cultivators and obtain a room on the second floor, this guy can't be underestimated anymore, but to say he's actually a problem for Li Qiang, aren't you taking it a bit too far?"
When he heard Ye Mo's name, Fang Jishen's steps froze, and his joyful expression stood rooted on his face in puzzlement.
He was wondering if he misheard or maybe there was another student called Ye Mo that he wasn't aware of.
"Who knows, for him to attain the 6th layer this fast as a rank 2 talent, this is really strange. Now that he's cultivating on the second floor, he will probably reach the 7th layer."
"Actually, for cultivators with low talent like him, surpassing others' speed and progressing this fast is not impossible."
"True, there are several methods in this world that can achieve such a thing, the easiest and most direct method is the Sparkling Light Grape, which upon consumption will nurture new wisps of qi in your dantian and condense them into the next layer, immediately making you breakthrough."
The group of students kept walking as their discussion evolved into different subjects with all sorts of gossip and opinions.
Fang Jishen stopped in the middle of the street, his head lowered as his expression turned grave.
Even his talent match, is it really him?
Impossible, he was only in the beginning of the Qi Gathering Realm, he couldn't possibly have gone through this much in such a short time?!
He couldn't make any sense of the conversation he just heard.
Months ago, he took part as an envoy in the trade between Ye Mo and the Liu clan however, he was never told what it involved as he just gave the package and received one. Being both fearful and furious to be part of the exchange, he quickly did his part and returned to his house after that.
In his mind, Ye Mo should have only obtained a few hundred gold coins and maybe a spiritual tool or a battle skill at best since he was dealing with a whole clan by himself, so of course it would be nothing too exaggerated. Fang Jishen didn't know the history between Ye Mo and the Liu clan, no matter how much he thought about it, he could not deduce the truth.
The Sparkling Light Grape wasn't even considered, it was far too rare for the Liu clan to have one and even if they did, they would have used it long ago. In the worst case, where they had one and didn't use it, they would never in a chance give it to Ye Mo.
The last time he saw Ye Mo was before the exchange with the Liu clan when he was given a package. At this time, Ye Mo was still a 3rd layer Qi Gathering Realm cultivator, how could he stand at the 6th layer right now?
If there was one thing he was certain of, it was that the sun covered the day, the moon guided the night, and cultivation was a long and strenuous ascension where one could only advance one step at a time until he would find himself before a completely different scenery.
A rank 2 talent should not advance this fast, it went against his certainties.
After an instant spent in thoughts, Fang Jishen quickly raised his head and ran with all his strength towards Ye Mo's house, a trace of apprehension quickly developing in his heart.
Shortly after, he stood in front of the stone dwelling, breathing loudly.
Fang Jishen knocked three times but there was still no response inside, so he just pushed the door open. Ye Mo didn't even bother to lock the entrance, and soon a room with a bed, a desk, and a red mat on the ground welcomed Fang Jishen's view.
"There's no one! This monk that would seldom leave his house isn't here, so it was true after all, he really is cultivating on the second floor of the pagoda!"
Suddenly, Fang Jishen's legs lost strength as he fell on his knees.
He just stood at the door, silly.
In reality, Fang Jishen was scared of Ye Mo. The way he tortured him in his house without batting an eye left a deep scar in his heart.
For Fang Jishen, bullying was a mere matter of intimidating the weak, sometimes giving a few punches and kicks when they didn't learn—nothing much. No one really ended with severe injuries and they stood in a land where the strong trampled on the weak, it was natural to crush others for your own interests.
Instructors didn't even bother to stop it, wasn't it proof that he was doing nothing wrong?
But against Ye Mo, it was different. There was no bullying, no insults, Fang Jishen didn't even hit him once. He simply asked and this one accepted to hand over his pill. He didn't protest, he didn't resist, there wasn't even the defeated compliance he could see sometimes. He simply led them to an isolated place and lashed at them with a brutality he had never met before.
As if the rules of the institute were nothing.
As if breaking bones was natural.
Like reputation was not even considered.
This kid took such drastic actions at the slightest inconvenience, he was too unhinged. If he wanted to torture or kill, he would act upon his thoughts without letting something like regulations stop him, Fang Jishen was certain of it.
Simply thinking about it made his heart grow cold. This was no impulsive act, or Ye Mo would have attacked in the library. This merciless measure taken in a flash by a twelve-year-old shocked Fang Jishen and made him wonder where this little savage came from.
Since this episode, Fang Jishen didn't want anything to do with Ye Mo and took the decision to stay as far away from him as possible.
However, even if he didn't want to involve himself with Ye Mo, it didn't mean this one wanted nothing to do with him, and now Ye Mo was going straight to his house and implicated him in shady trades with the Liu clan.
He felt trapped. From now on, Ye Mo could just visit him and he would have no choice but to abide by his will, becoming a convenient henchman.
Fang Jishen was not brave enough to face him or fight back, however, he had one ace up his sleeve.
One certainty that helped him piece up his shattered confidence and build it anew.
Talent!
Ye Mo was only a rank 2 talent, but he was rank 3!
As long as he cultivated diligently, he would always remain ahead and slowly surpass him. With time the gap would only grow, and if one day he could attain the Foundation Establishment Realm, he could swat Ye Mo like a fly, he who had no chance to reach it.
He was already at the 4th layer of the Qi Gathering Realm, simply breaking through the 7th layer would allow him to greatly increase his abilities and beat him easily.
With this conviction, he was able to throw himself fully towards cultivation, working hard without giving up until he reached the 7th layer. With a newfound courage, he could boldly confront his nemesis and move on from this trauma.
Knowing Ye Mo, he might instantly attack him at the slightest opposition, there shouldn't be much problem breaking his legs or gouging one eye when acting in self-defense, ensuring he would not be able to go wild for a long time.
"It can't be possible! I worked so hard all this time but this scum has already almost caught up to me. Are the heavens making a joke of me? I haven't even stepped a foot in the pagoda yet, but now he is cultivating on the second floor!" Fang Jishen roared in his heart.
The truth was so much different from his imagination; it wasn't just about Ye Mo's cultivation but also the shocking news of him defeating 8th layer cultivators. The further you went in cultivation, the greater the gap between each breakthrough. Ye Mo being able to defeat students two layers higher than him was simply inconceivable.
"How did he grow so strong? Did the Liu clan really hand over their legacy battle skill, or is body refining that advantageous?"
Fang Jishen felt despondency, confusion, unwillingness, fear and other complicated feelings.
All the courage he had gathered quickly deflated like a balloon. It all started like a dream as he rushed towards his house soon after breaking through without properly gathering qi in his dantian, confident he could win without much trouble even with low reserves of qi.
Yet now, it ended like a nightmare and Fang Jishen only wished he would wake up in his bed the next instant.
Ye Mo's Black Vortex cultivation technique was far superior in speed to Fang Jishen's one, and taking into account the Meridian Purifying pill, he easily surpassed his pace. Adding to that, Ye Mo has been continuously consuming Spirit Qi pills for several months, and his cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds. Fang Jishen was only an unremarkable student who sometimes enjoyed resources here and there, but during the last seven months, he mostly cultivated by himself. Evidently, he couldn't compare.
He stood half kneeling in front of the entrance with a blank stare for a long time before he slowly dragged his body back.
As time went by, the sun climbed higher.
Ye Mo's performance in the pagoda became one of the after-meal topics for weeks and led to all kinds of reactions in his surroundings, Fang Jishen being just one of them.
Within a room in the Liu clan estate, Liu Dan looked at a youngster with an ice-cold expression.
"You have been cultivating for four years in the institute, but you get defeated like a toddler by this kid. Is this how you're going to thank us after all the resources we have invested in you?" Liu Dan suddenly scolded mercilessly.
"This is this junior's mistake, I couldn't meet ancestor's expectations and ask for his forgiveness." Liu Sen said his head lowered.
His face was very pale, and although his bones seemed healed, injuries remained in his body.
Liu Dan was silent for a moment, making the atmosphere grow tense within the room.
After some time, he sighed deeply, "What's done is done, I didn't expect him to become so strong this fast either. This threat is growing larger by the day, we have to get rid of him."
Suddenly, a glint flashed in Liu Dan's eyes as he asked, "You told me he went cultivating in the room after defeating you?"
"Yes, from what I heard, after a short scuffle with the Li clan's young master, he cultivated for a month in the room."
"Not too long ago he even went to the second floor and obtained another room there. He should still be cultivating inside as we're talking." Liu Sen reported everything.
What he said wasn't anything difficult to learn, and even though he was unconscious after fighting with Ye Mo, he easily heard of everything that happened later on.
"Hmm, even the second floor at that, it must have cost a lot of gold coins, his finances should be tight. Even you can only cultivate for a few days a month at best with your financial situation." Liu Dan said as something came to his mind
"When Liu Zhi is done with his cultivation, send him over here. I have an important task he needs to carry for me." With a wave of the hand, Liu Dan sent Liu Sen away.
With instructions given, Liu Sen left with a bow, relieved to have escaped punishment.
"Right, as long as he wants to cultivate, wealth is too important, no one can ignore it." Liu Dan thought, sitting behind a desk as a smile crept up on his face, rendering him even more sinister.