prynovel Chapter 265 - 174: Stepping into the Golden Core Realm
Chapter 265 - 174: Stepping into the Golden Core Realm
The Sixth Courtyard of Cloud Mist Peak had initially drawn a lot of attention.
But as time went on, the number of people paying attention plummeted by the second month.
Despite the Sixth Courtyard’s big move, nothing seemed to have changed.
It felt like the whole affair was all for show.
There was nothing else worth watching.
Chang Qiweng had been visiting Jiang Man’s place for a while.
But he was never able to find him.
He did, however, see the envelope.
It was now December, and it was time to pay the rent again.
He had no choice but to borrow money to cover the rent for him.
He had tried to visit several times, but Jiang Man was nowhere to be found.
Fortunately, his creditors weren’t pressing for repayment, or he would have had to borrow from someone else.
However, he did ask around and learned about the situation at the Sixth Courtyard.
But he didn’t dare go there himself.
Although he worked as a messenger for the Sect, he wasn’t a true Student Cultivator.
There was no telling what might happen if he rashly entered certain places.
In short, his colleagues had warned him to stay away from the areas where Student Cultivators practiced their cultivation.
That way, he wouldn’t run into any major trouble.
To get a clearer picture of Jiang Man’s situation, he went through a chain of people.
He found Xiaopang, who found Luo Xuan, who in turn found Cheng Yu.
She was the one who could contact Fang Yong.
As the current genius of the Seventh Courtyard, Fang Yong was sure to know what was going on.
But Cheng Yu said that Fang Yong had gone missing.
Everyone was a little surprised.
The situation in the Sect was far more complicated than at the Yunqian Bureau.
Finally, Xiaopang found Gao Rong.
"Jiang Man?" Gao Rong said, a hint of excitement in his voice. "He should be attempting Core Formation, but it’s hard to say exactly when he’ll succeed.
"Right now, everyone is guessing who will be the first in the Outer Sect to achieve Core Formation.
"Will it be the recently famous Jiang Man, or the long-reigning number one of the Outer Sect, Shangguan Liuyun?
"For now, all anyone knows is that Jiang Man and his courtyard are pulling all-nighters to cultivate.
"Meanwhile, Shangguan Liuyun has secluded himself within an array."
"Young Master Gao, do you know roughly how long Core Formation takes?" Chang Qiweng asked.
His income for the next month wouldn’t be enough to pay off his debts.
He had to consider borrowing a Spiritual Source or finding more work to do.
Gao Rong shook his head.
However, he had looked into other people’s Core Formation processes.
Most took more than half a year.
Hearing this, Chang Qiweng felt immense pressure.
In half a year, Jiang Man would have to pay rent two more times.
Over six thousand each time.
That was more than ten thousand in total.
For a moment, he was struck by how staggering the monthly expenses were for a prodigy like Jiang Man.
No wonder he had to borrow money.
An ordinary family could never afford it.
And this was just for his residence.
A residence with a courtyard was far too expensive.
Xiaopang, however, insisted that Jiang Man would be faster than anyone else.
But just how much faster, no one could say.
Chang Qiweng could only take things one step at a time. Besides, it was already December.
’I wonder if my sister will manage to qualify,’ he thought.
After that, the days passed one by one.
「December 25th」
Life went on as usual, and even Xiaopang and the others didn’t feel anything out of the ordinary.
「December 27th」
Yan Yiqiu had stopped paying close attention to Jiang Man’s group. After all this time, all they ever did was cultivate.
Aside from some minor progress, there was nothing else to see.
So she didn’t give them much thought.
「December 28th」
Fairy Huai Jing arrived at the Law Enforcement Hall’s prison.
She looked at Yu Wanyi with a sigh. "Come back with me."
"It’s not as safe outside as it is in here," Yu Wanyi said, shaking her head. After a pause, she added, "But I will be safe very soon."
"Why? Has your cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds?" Fairy Huai Jing asked.
She had originally planned to leave her disciple be, just to see what kind of mess she would make.
But with Yu Wanyi stubbornly remaining in the Law Enforcement Hall, she felt rather helpless.
Besides, the people from the Law Enforcement Hall had come to see her.
They hoped she would take her disciple back.
Otherwise, they would have to start charging for her food.
To prevent her disciple from freeloading, and to save her own face, she had decided to bring the girl home.
Unfortunately, her disciple had no intention of leaving.
"Because Jiang Man is already undergoing Core Formation," Yu Wanyi said.
"Core Formation takes a long time. At least a few more months," Fairy Huai Jing said.
However, Yu Wanyi shook her head. "No, it will be very soon.
"He will form his Golden Core at a time you would never expect. All prior experience is irrelevant when it comes to him.
"Because everything he cultivates and learns will subvert all that has come before.
"This is the performance he is truly capable of."
"Are you sure?" Fairy Huai Jing asked.
Yu Wanyi nodded.
’She, for one, could never have scored in the nineties on her first assessment. But he... he had nearly shattered the Sect’s supposedly unbreakable 100-point rule.’
’Furthermore, he had led the Seventh Courtyard to become number one in the Outer Sect.
’The best they had ever been, in fact.
’If he hadn’t obtained the Promotion Skill, or if he had failed to acquire the Third Skill...
’...then it would have been natural for his legend to end there.
’But he did.
’Which meant the legend would be his to continue writing.’
Fairy Huai Jing let out a heavy sigh as she left the prison.
Then she paid for Yu Wanyi’s meals.
After that, she returned to her own residence, but she also began to pay attention to the Sixth Courtyard, where Jiang Man was staying.
She wanted to see just when this prodigy her disciple believed in would complete his Core Formation.
However, she only planned to check in on him once every month or two.
Only...
「December 29th」
Dark clouds suddenly appeared over Cloud Mist Peak.
The change was unexpected.
’Is Spiritual Qi gathering?’
「December 30th」
The dark clouds grew thicker, even beginning to form a vortex.
At this, everyone on Cloud Mist Peak immediately sensed that something was wrong.
「Afternoon」
The dark clouds in the sky churned as a hurricane-force wind began to blow.
Instantly, everyone was on high alert, wondering why such extreme weather would appear over Cloud Mist Peak.
「Evening」
A tornado formed in the center of the dark clouds and began to descend.
Its target was none other than the Sixth Courtyard.
In that instant, everyone was jolted to attention.
Yan Yiqiu rushed to the Sixth Courtyard immediately.
But she could no longer get to the center.
The hurricane winds swirled, making it impassable unless one forced their way through.