Sunday
Lian sat in his room, cross-legged, letting his ether flow through the pathways in his body, slowly refining them. The ether pathways slightly condensed and strengthened as he kept circulating his ether through them.
People with low aptitude, like Lian, depleted their ether much faster and took longer to recover. It is also lot harder for them to ascend.
Whenever Lian was close to exhausting his ether reserves, he would use the ether crystals to replenish his reserves and continue the refinement process.
He kept at it for almost the entire day, taking only short breaks in between. The process was slow and exhausting, it would probably look insane to anyone watching, but Lian endured it without complaint. If this is what it takes to move even a step closer to his goals, then so be it.
By evening, around six, he finally stopped and stood up, stretching his stiff body. The intense refinement had left him exhausted, and the stockpile of ether crystals he had gathered was nearly depleted while he barely made any noticeable progress.
He looked at the last few crystals remaining in his possession and sighed.
Almost every student struggled with resources. They were rare, and obtaining high-quality resources in quantity was hard. The academy only provided a limited amount, and each student had a limit on how much they could purchase.
The same problem existed outside the academy. It wasn't a matter of money but supply. Resources were always in short supply.
Lian still had over forty thousand Clads left from his extortion scheme. He had more than enough money to buy ether crystals, but finding a seller with stock was another matter entirely. As for the academy, he could only get very few, which were not really sufficient.
He thought back to the duel he had won recently.
People from clans and top families really have it easy when it comes to resources. At the very least, they don't have to worry about running out of them.
Resources such as ether crystals, medicinal herbs, potions, and other cultivation materials were largely controlled by clans, the military, and the families that held power within the government.
The scarcity of these resources in the consumer market wasn't due to some conspiracy like the government want to keep people weak to prevent them from revolting. It was simply a matter of supply and demand. Most ordinary people worked regular jobs or ran businesses. Their lives were stable and peaceful, and very few had any interest in cultivating their bodies or pursuing ascension. As a result, demand remained relatively low.
But the real problem was supply. Gathering medicinal herbs and rare plants required venturing deep into dangerous forests, while ether crystal mining was entirely managed by the government. Most of this work was carried out by clans and specialized military squads.
Naturally, the resources they obtained were distributed to government institutions, clans, academies and their own members long before they ever reached the open market.
It's mostly a supply chain issue or something.
I could technically go into the forests and harvest these resources myself, but the chances of dying are pretty high. Besides, I have a better way of obtaining what I need if I can simply strike a deal with one of the clans.
Putting that aside, there were still many areas where Lian was lacking.
There were three main factors that determined a person's strength: their Sequence, their runes, and, most importantly, their combat skill.
Even with Sequence 2, my lack of skill won't disappear. Better runes can only cover so much.
That left him with only one realistic option.
Reaching Sequence 2 before the practical exams is still a long shot. I don't have enough time, or the physical ability, to make any meaningful improvement to my combat skills, so upgrading my runes is the only realistic thing I can work on.
With his next course of action decided, Lian stood up and looked out the window. The sky had already begun to darken.
I should eat something and get some sleep.
--
The next day,
Lian was walking through the hallway. For some reason, he had woken up early, so he decided to attend class on time for once.
As he walked down the corridor, he spotted a familiar face in the distance.
Damn. I should've slept in and shown up late like usual.
His steps slowed for a moment before he continued forward.
"Hey, Selene. Long time no see."
She looked at Lian and gave him a calculated smile as he approached.
"Hey, Lian. Haven't seen you in a long time. How've you been?" she asked.
"Yeah, it was going good until I ran into you just now," Lian replied.
Selene placed a hand over her chest acting like she is hurt. "You really hurt my feelings, you know. I was about to tell you some crazy gossip going around about you, but I think I'll keep it to myself now."
Lian stared off into the distance with a blank expression.
This really feels like one of those unskippable cut-scenes.
He shifted his attention back to her, curiosity appearing on his face.
"Wait, really? What were they saying about me?"
She still looked slightly hurt. "You still haven't apologized to me."
Lian replied in a sarcastic tone, "No, I was just joking earlier. You're the best thing that ever happened to me."
Selene let out a laugh, looking quite pleased with herself.
"You've gotten pretty popular recently. First because of the soul core, and then for defeating a Sequence 2 student while still being Sequence 1."
"Oh, really?" Lian said. "I mean, I'm just that awesome. It's only natural."
Selene shook her head.
"No, that's not the part people are talking about. The main thing is that duel."
She continued, "That Sequence 2 guy from Class C was known for being arrogant and constantly bothering Bella. Then you fought him and beat him, and after that he stopped harassing her."
Selene gave Lian a strange look.
"So now people are saying she found a new guy who fell for her and fought for her. You're not actually in love with her or anything, right?"
Lian paused for a moment.
I mean, two guys fighting over one girl. What else could people possibly think?
Lian laughed.
"Looks like someone's jealous that another girl is getting all the attention."
"Stop joking around," Selene said, annoyed.
"And about that fight... I had other reasons. Besides, how did she even become the center of this story?"
"Well, she kind of twisted the story when she told it to us," Selene replied. "She made it sound like the whole thing happened because of her."
She paused for a moment before adding, "Still, I'd recommend staying away from her. She tends to attract trouble."
"Like she acts as if she's going to die without a man or constant attention from guys."
Lian laughed. "I didn't knew you had such a good sense of humor. And also I'll keep that in mind."
The two exchanged a few more words before parting ways. Lian headed toward Class D, already thinking about the rest of his day.
Then he heard it.
Three pairs of quiet footsteps approaching from behind.
Lian didn't even turn around.
Ah crap. I should've just skipped school today altogether.
Nox wrapped an arm around Lian's neck.
"Looks like someone's in a good mood today. Enjoying your time with your girlfriend?"
Lin Ling let out a disappointed sigh. "I thought we were best friends, but I guess your girlfriend is more important to you now."
Sunny nodded. "No need to hide it from us, man."
Lian gave them an annoyed look.
"There isn't anything to hide in the first place. And you do remember that you guys are the whole reason I'm in this mess, right?"
Nox pulled off Lin Ling's glasses and put them on, adjusting them with a finger while trying to look smart.
"Are we? I can't recall doing anything that could have caused this... whatever mess you're referring to."
Lian rolled his eyes.
"It was a year ago. After you guys found out I had a crush on her, you forced me to confess after I lost your stupid rigged bet."
Lin Ling reached for his glasses, but Nox pulled them away and blocked him with his free hand, the two awkwardly struggling over them without putting any real force into it.
Nox chuckled.
"Yeah, I do remember that bet. Come to think of it, I think it was actually Lin Ling's idea to rig that bet."
"Don't drag me into this," Lin Ling shot back, still trying to reclaim his glasses. "It was completely your idea to rig the bet and make Lian confess to his crush."
Lian added, "And after that little stunt, not only did she reject me, but she made sure the entire academy knew about it."
Nox and Sunny immediately burst out laughing.
"Yeah, yeah, now we remember," Nox said between laughs. "People were spreading rumors that the first semester hadn't even started yet, and some guy had already confessed and gotten rejected."
Lian looked at them with a grin.
"I'm going to return this tenfold, so you two better be prepared."
That only made them laugh harder.
The three stopped messing around when the bell rang and it was finally time for classes to begin.
--
Later that day, while walking back to his dorm, he found himself thinking about the day he got rejected.
Or, more precisely...
The day the original Lian got rejected.
In truth, it was nothing more than puberty. At that age, people fall in love, or more accurately, become infatuated based on appearances.
Honestly it is also the only time people experience Love in it's purest form. As one grow older and accumulate more experiences, they start seeing things differently. It becomes harder and harder to love the same way they once did.
Finding the right person, things like these took time.
"Well, at least the Lian of this world is a better person than me," he muttered. "While I'm selfish and self-centered, this guy had enough empathy to even care about someone other than himself."
He fell silent for a moment.
"Maybe if not for my transmigration, he would have walked a different path. Something safer and maybe he would've even lived a happy life."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Well, too bad. Now that I'm here, that future no longer exists for either of us."
By the time he finished his train of thought, he was already standing in front of his dorm.