The moment Lian Chen achieved Qi Condensation, Stage 4, the suffocating pressure of the approaching deadline lifted, replaced by a new, equally intense certainty: the certainty of his hidden power. He was no longer the frail, broken youth who had crawled into the Archives; he was a furnace of incandescent spiritual energy, a secret artifact walking among mortals. But the immense power now coursing through his Transcendent Meridians presented an immediate, life-threatening problem. The power of Stage 4 was too pure, too dense, and too magnificent to be mistaken for the Qi of a mere Second Layer Disciple. To pass the test, he had to prove he met the minimum requirement without revealing the cataclysmic truth of his Ten Thousand Stages foundation.
He pushed himself up, his muscles moving with an unfamiliar, vibrant spring. The first thing he noticed was the overwhelming stench of the residual waste covering him. His old robes, now stained with the dark, foul-smelling impurities expelled from his body during the 'Vessel Reborn' process, were ruined. He quickly stripped them off, retrieving a small, spare outer tunic from a hidden satchel, but even this offered poor concealment for the sheer vitality thrumming beneath his skin.
He focused on the Obsidian Bead in his Spirit Sea. The Bead was now the master. He didn't ask it for help; he simply demanded guidance. Immediately, the Bead projected a complex, yet fundamental, formula directly into his mind: The Technique of the Concealed Aura. This wasn't a combat art, but a defensive, self-regulating technique that used a tiny fraction of the Azure Essence to wrap his true cultivation in a shimmering, spiritual fog, forcing the excess power to cycle harmlessly outside the boundaries of his normal Dantian until it was safe to release.
Lian Chen spent the next hour mastering the suppression. It felt like trying to cap a volcano with a cork. Every breath threatened to overflow his carefully constructed facade, but the Transcendent Meridians proved their worth, holding the immense pressure with impossible resilience. He learned to project the presence of a shaky, newly stabilized Second Layer cultivator—strong enough to pass the test, weak enough to remain utterly beneath suspicion.
When he finally emerged from the Forgotten Library Archives and into the pre-dawn stillness, the world felt slower, muted, and less substantial. The very air, thick with the Spiritual Qi of the Jade Dragon Mountains, seemed to recoil slightly from his suppressed aura. He quickly made his way back to the Inner Courtyard, washing away the residue in the cold spring water before changing into his only clean set of blue Inner Sect robes.
The sun had just risen, painting the highest peaks in a stroke of gold and crimson, when Lian Chen arrived at the Azure Peak Pavilion. This was the Sect's main disciplinary and examination hall—a vast, open-air structure built around a shimmering jade plinth where the Spiritual Qi Assessment Array was located.
Today was not a grand public event, but the importance of the Inner Sect demotion meant a small crowd had gathered. About fifty disciples stood around the edges, their faces a mixture of morbid curiosity and detached superiority. They whispered among themselves, pointing discreetly at Lian Chen. He was, after all, a famous cautionary tale: the boy with the Profound Yin Physique who failed.
Standing at the front were two figures. The first was, of course, Elder Lin, clad in his immaculate white and gold robes, his expression unreadable but his shoulders tense. Next to him, observing silently, was Chief Disciple Xiaoru, a woman renowned for her frigid efficiency and terrifying command of the Mid-Foundation Building Realm. Her presence meant this was an official, binding verdict.
But the one who made Lian Chen's jaw clench was Mingyu. Mingyu, a disciple from a powerful noble family, was currently stabilized at the Third Layer of Qi Condensation—a genuine talent, but also a smug, arrogant rival who had long resented Lian Chen's initial status. He stood slightly forward, radiating an exaggerated air of pity, his eyes mocking.
"Look, he actually showed up," Mingyu sneered, just loud enough for the closest disciples to hear. "I thought the mighty Profound Yin Genius would run away and die a mortal death, rather than face the shame of carrying buckets."
Lian Chen ignored him, his focus absolute. He walked directly to the plinth, bowing deeply to Elder Lin and Chief Disciple Xiaoru.
"Lian Chen, Fourth Disciple, I presume you are here to submit to the final assessment," Elder Lin stated, his voice ringing with formal detachment. "The terms remain unchanged. You must prove stability at the Second Layer of Qi Condensation, or you forfeit your Inner Sect status."
"I understand, Elder Lin," Lian Chen replied, his voice firm, no longer a defeated rasp.
Elder Lin raised an eyebrow, noting the change in his voice, but said nothing. He gestured to the jade plinth. "Place your palm on the array. Let it measure your depth."
Lian Chen stepped onto the plinth. The air became heavy with the anticipation of failure. He slowly placed his right palm onto the cold jade surface of the Spiritual Qi Assessment Array. He felt the Array's formation runes immediately begin to drain his internal Qi for measurement.
This was the moment of impossible precision.
If he suppressed too much, the Array would register him as still stuck in the First Layer, and he would be demoted. If he failed to suppress the Azure Essence and allowed the full Stage 4 power to flow, the Array would likely explode from the overload, or at minimum, reveal a cultivation level so outrageously high that the Elders would instantly realize he was using a forbidden, potentially demonic, technique.
Suppress. Filter. Only the bare minimum.
He allowed a small, controlled trickle of refined Qi—not the Azure Essence, but the refined byproduct his new meridians had naturally accumulated—to flow into the Array. He intentionally made the flow slightly shaky, simulating the instability of a fresh breakthrough.
The jade plinth glowed faintly, a sickly, pale yellow—the indicator for the First Layer. The disciples started murmuring in disappointment. Mingyu let out a short, contemptuous laugh.
Elder Lin's face darkened, and he began to open his mouth to declare the demotion.
But Lian Chen refused to lose. He forced a tiny, tiny bit more power through the blockade, this time using a minimal amount of the Azure Essence as pure fuel to push the refined Qi harder. The Essence acted like a jet engine behind a fragile shell.
The pale yellow light wavered, pulsed, and then shifted. It changed to a stronger, more vibrant green hue—the unmistakable indicator of the Second Layer of Qi Condensation.
The array stabilized at the Second Layer.
A stunned silence fell over the pavilion. The disciples froze, their murmurs dying in their throats. Mingyu's smirk vanished, replaced by open disbelief.
Elder Lin stared at the Array, then at Lian Chen's sweat-sheened face. "The Second Layer," he repeated, his voice slow and suspicious. "It is stabilized." He cleared his throat. "Lian Chen, you have met the minimum requirement. By the Sect Master's decree, your status as Inner Sect Disciple is preserved."
But the Elder's eyes narrowed. The increase was simply too sudden, too dramatic for someone whose meridians had been deemed "shattered" just three days ago. Elder Lin leaned forward conspiratorially. "I must ask, disciple, what medicine did you consume? The sect has no record of any elixir capable of such a rapid, healing breakthrough."
Lian Chen bowed again, feigning exhaustion. "Elder, after my failure, I retreated to the Archives. I found a single, forgotten scroll—a simple, basic Qi-circulating technique from the Founding Era. I applied myself with desperation, knowing this was my last chance. I pushed my failing meridians past their limit. The breakthrough was achieved through sheer, painful effort, not through elixirs."
He spoke the truth—but not the whole truth. He had found a scroll, he had used sheer effort, and he had pushed his meridians past their limit. The explanation was just plausible enough for a desperate disciple, and it contained no lie that could be easily refuted without knowing the secret of the Obsidian Bead.
"A forgotten technique..." Chief Disciple Xiaoru mused, stepping forward. Her eyes were sharp, analytical, and unsettlingly close to the truth. "An impressive burst of will, then. However, the array only measures raw power. A forced breakthrough can leave one unstable and vulnerable. We cannot allow an unstable disciple to remain in the Inner Sect."
Mingyu seized the opportunity, his disbelief curdling into cold, professional jealousy. "Chief Disciple is correct! This breakthrough is highly suspicious. He only managed the Second Layer at the absolute last minute! I propose a brief, non-lethal assessment of his combat stability. Lian Chen and I are both in the Qi Condensation Realm. If he is truly stable, he should be able to exchange ten moves with me."
Mingyu was a late Second Layer cultivator, nearly at the Third. For Lian Chen, who was supposedly a newly stable Second Layer, ten moves would be a brutal, humiliating defeat. Mingyu knew this was his chance to permanently stamp out his rival's status.
Lian Chen realized this was unavoidable. If he refused, he would be deemed unstable anyway. He had to fight, and he had to win.
He met Elder Lin's gaze, then nodded slowly. "I accept the challenge. Ten moves."
Elder Lin's suspicion deepened, but he allowed it. "Very well. The test is changed. A spar. Ten movements, non-lethal."
The Array plinth was quickly cleared. The disciples, previously murmuring, now settled into excited silence. A genuine challenge!
Mingyu grinned, a wolfish, predatory display. He drew a lightweight, silvery short sword—a standard Inner Sect artifact—and channeled his Qi. The sword hummed with spiritual energy. "Don't worry, Lian Chen," he called out, mockingly. "I won't shatter what little you have left."
Lian Chen adopted the simplest, most fundamental stance of the Qingyun Sect—the Stance of the Unmoving Mountain. He didn't draw a weapon, a deliberate choice that made Mingyu's eyes widen in confused offense. He channeled the Ten Thousand Stages Scripture's power, but this time, he loosened the Concealed Aura only slightly, allowing the hyper-pure Azure Essence to flood his limbs, but still keeping his aura strictly pegged to the perceived level of the Second Layer.
The difference was in quality, not quantity. Mingyu's Qi was a murky river; Lian Chen's was distilled crystal.
"Begin!" Elder Lin shouted.
Mingyu darted forward, his silver sword a blur. He executed the Whispering Wind Strike, a precise, common technique designed to disable the opponent's wrist. It was a swift, efficient opening move.
Lian Chen moved. He didn't rely on speed—his physical body was still catching up—but on perfect, unassailable timing and purity. He sidestepped the strike with less than an inch to spare, a movement of inhuman economy. As the silver blade whistled past his chest, Lian Chen countered with the most basic attack in the entire Qingyun curriculum: the Cloud-Shattering Palm.
It was a technique taught to every new recruit, designed merely to gather Qi and push. But when Lian Chen executed it, the result was anything but basic. The palm strike traveled only a short distance, but it was utterly saturated with the Azure Essence—Qi so pure it defied the very atmosphere.
The pure, concentrated burst of energy struck Mingyu's defense, which was protected by his own standard Third Layer Qi barrier. Mingyu's barrier, accustomed to resisting fragmented, muddy Qi, was instantly overwhelmed. The Azure Essence didn't fight his defense; it shattered it, like a laser cutting through cheap cloth.
A dull thud echoed as the pure spiritual pressure bypassed Mingyu's defense and struck his Dantian. Mingyu didn't receive an injury; he received a colossal shock. He staggered backward, his eyes wide in panic, the internal vibration forcing him to drop his silver sword with a loud clang. He crumpled to his knees, not from pain, but from the sudden, terrifying realization that his opponent's Qi felt like the energy of an entirely different, higher realm.
One move. Lian Chen stood still, his hand outstretched in the finished position of the Cloud-Shattering Palm. Mingyu was on his knees, gasping, his face pale with humiliation and fear.
The silence that followed was heavier than any shout. The spectators stared, utterly bewildered. Mingyu, a stable Third Layer disciple, had been neutralized by a supposed new Second Layer disciple using the most basic, fundamental move.
"He… he won," a young female disciple whispered, breaking the tension.
Elder Lin's eyes narrowed further, now filled with a genuine, unsettling alarm. He couldn't deny the result, nor could he refute the simplicity of the technique used. He could only observe the sheer, unholy purity of the Qi that Lian Chen was barely leaking.
"The spar is concluded," Elder Lin declared, his voice tight. "Lian Chen has demonstrated stability and proficiency. His status as an Inner Sect Disciple is confirmed."
Mingyu scrambled to his feet, his dignity shredded. "Elder, this is impossible! He must be using some kind of forbidden artifact to boost his strength momentarily!"
"Be silent, Mingyu," Chief Disciple Xiaoru commanded, her voice cutting through his outburst. She approached Lian Chen, her expression still frigid, but her eyes held a spark of interest. "Lian Chen. An admirable display. But this kind of rapid advancement requires not only will, but boundless resources. The sect's resources are allocated based on perceived need and rank. While your status is safe, your allowance will remain at the basic Second Layer level."
This was the next trap. Lian Chen's Ten Thousand Stages Scripture required resources exponentially greater than standard cultivation. Even a single day of using the technique would consume a month's worth of basic Second Layer Spirit Stones. His meager allowance would be useless.
He met Xiaoru's gaze, understanding her unspoken test. "Chief Disciple, I am grateful. I do not ask for special resources. I only ask for the right to earn them."
"And how will a newly stable Second Layer Disciple earn enough to support such an explosive technique?" she challenged.
"By accepting tasks that others avoid," Lian Chen stated simply. He saw the flicker of curiosity in her eyes. "I request to be transferred from the standard cultivation syllabus and assigned to the Spiritual Herb Harvesting Division. It is arduous and dangerous, but the rewards are determined by merit and volume, not rank."
The Spiritual Herb Harvesting Division was responsible for gathering rare ingredients from the treacherous slopes of the Jade Dragon Mountains. It was a lonely, dangerous job, often leading to encounters with powerful Spirit Beasts or rival cultivators. The reason others avoided it was that the massive effort and inherent danger often outweighed the meager, low-grade rewards.
But for Lian Chen, it offered one vital thing: unlimited access to raw spiritual energy, in the form of low-grade herbs and plants, which his Obsidian Bead could devour and refine.
Elder Lin frowned. "The Harvesting Division is not meant for direct disciples. It is for those seeking penal labor or desperate coin."
"Then let me be both desperate and dedicated, Elder," Lian Chen said, his conviction absolute. He knew that the only way to feed the insatiable hunger of the Ten Thousand Stages was to leave the confines of the Sect's standardized cultivation and face the dangers of the world head-on.
Chief Disciple Xiaoru assessed him for a long, silent moment. She saw the exhaustion, the feigned instability, and the burning ambition that survived a death sentence. She saw a fierce independence that bordered on recklessness.
"Your request is unusual, but it is granted," she announced, overriding Elder Lin's protest. "Report to the Division Manager at the foot of the Mountain Pass tomorrow at dawn. You will be given your tools and your first assignment. Do not expect any leniency, Lian Chen. If you fail to meet the required quotas, your Inner Sect status will be revoked permanently."
Lian Chen bowed low, his heart pounding with triumph. He had not only survived the demotion, but he had secured his resource channel. He was free from Elder Lin's daily scrutiny and had secured access to the Spiritual Qi he desperately needed.
As he walked away from the pavilion, ignoring Mingyu's glowering face and the whispers of the amazed disciples, he focused inward.
The Obsidian Bead pulsed approvingly. The next stage of cultivation, Stage 5 - Meridian Flow, was already starting to beckon. He had less than twenty-four hours to begin securing the immense wealth of spiritual herbs required, or his miracle would become his undoing. The path of the Azure Heaven's Ascendant was not a gentle climb; it was a furious sprint against the gates of total collapse. His new life began not as a hero, but as a humble, overworked harvester, secretly feeding a catastrophic, heaven-shattering power with every root and leaf he collected.