"The first test for learning this Magic Skill is tempering your Heart Spirit.

"The hourglass seems to be moving, but it’s actually been still the whole time.

"It’s a test of patience, to see if you’ll waste your Heart Spirit on other things. It’s a grueling wait, and then, suddenly, the teaching begins.

"Anyone who has exhausted their Heart Spirit like that will likely struggle to keep up.

"Did you know that?"

He hadn’t planned on revealing this, but the other guy looked like he thought he’d gotten a head start, so he decided to knock him down a peg.

Unfortunately, the guy didn’t seem fazed at all, merely replying calmly, "I know now."

’He’s just putting on a brave face. He must be regretting it terribly,’ the man thought, then said, "Need to recover your Heart Spirit now?"

Jiang Man looked at him and answered honestly, "I’m out of Elixirs."

"Water Element Pills? I have some. Want them at market price?" the man asked.

Jiang Man was a bit surprised. He had thought the man just wanted to see him make a fool of himself.

He never expected him to go this far just for a laugh.

It was a true godsend.

In the end, he spent eight thousand for ten pills.

He had twenty thousand Spiritual Source left.

And so, Jiang Man resumed his Cultivation.

The others watched without saying a word.

They felt he had initially just been trying to attract attention. He probably only realized later how much it drained his Heart Spirit, and now, to save face, he had to bite the bullet and keep cultivating.

Now, everyone was wondering when he would finally give out and stop.

But they waited for five days.

On the tenth day, Jiang Man stopped his Cultivation once again.

By this point, the Gourd was already ninety percent full.

Another day or two and it would be enough.

But then, the hourglass moved.

Jiang Man had to stop.

Immediately after, the hourglass vanished, and a middle-aged man appeared, sitting cross-legged before them.

Everyone rose in unison and bowed respectfully. "Greetings, Teacher."

The middle-aged man nodded slightly and said, "Some of you are at the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment, and some are at the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment. So I must remind you, this Magic Skill can only be learned by those at the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment.

"Once the lesson begins, you cannot leave, nor can you study any other Magic Skills.

"I trust you are already aware of the consequences of failing to learn it.

"Anyone who does not wish to learn may leave now."

Everyone instinctively glanced at Jiang Man.

The woman from before shook her head. ’He’s just trying to protect his pathetic pride,’ she thought.

’Acting like this, he probably isn’t wealthy.’

’Otherwise, why would he start cultivating the moment he came in? Doesn’t he understand that this place is for tempering one’s Heart Spirit?’

Jiang Man paid no mind to their stares. ’They’ll see the light soon enough.’

’The truth is bound to shine on them eventually.’

"Then let’s begin," the instructor said. "You have three days to listen to my lecture. The last two days are for Cultivation. When you leave, you must record your progress. Even those at the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment must record the basic form."

After that, the man began his introduction to the Five Elements Combined.

He had to start by explaining the Five Elements.

"The Five Elements—Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—are the framework of heaven and earth, the foundation of all creation..."

"The movements of the Five Elements are profound beyond measure. In the heavens, they are the five stars; on the earth, the five sacred mountains; in man, the five viscera. Their principles are subtle, their applications divine."

Jiang Man felt that the Five Elements Technique wasn’t that difficult.

But as the explanation went deeper, his brows furrowed.

The Five Elements and the five viscera, the five viscera and the five phenomena—neither form nor substance.

The more the instructor spoke, the less Jiang Man could understand. Due to his lack of fundamental knowledge, he could only grasp the bare minimum.

And as more and more prerequisite knowledge was required, he understood even less.

Soon, the lecture moved beyond foundational knowledge to more related concepts.

And after that, it was no longer just about knowledge, but about application.

And certain situations that required one’s own comprehension.

Jiang Man could only force himself to memorize everything.

He didn’t dare let his focus waver.

It truly required a great deal of Heart Spirit, and was even inadvertently refining his.

Fortunately, his Heart Spirit was firm and didn’t waver in the slightest.

For three days, the middle-aged man lectured without rest.

This too was a trial for their Heart Spirit.

Some of the others’ brows were slightly furrowed.

But Jiang Man showed no reaction at all.

Pulling all-nighters was second nature to him; in fact, he was even more energetic at night.

The others, however, had to struggle to stay awake.

The lecture only came to a complete stop at the end of the third day.

"That is the gist of it. You have two days left to comprehend and learn."

"When you finally leave, you will need to demonstrate it and have your progress recorded. Furthermore, your progress will also be recorded when you enter the Secret Realm."

"Of course, if you can’t learn it, you can also choose to give up."

Having said this, the middle-aged man vanished.

The others began to contemplate and practice.

Jiang Man stood up and resumed circulating the Nascent Condensation Skill to raise his Cultivation.

The others looked at Jiang Man and shook their heads, truly unable to comprehend his actions.

’Why is he still cultivating?’

’There should be a limit to acting on sheer bravado.’

"Maybe you should just try to cultivate the Five Elements Combined," the woman from before advised.

Jiang Man thanked her and continued raising his Cultivation.

Two days passed quickly. Jiang Man had absorbed all of his remaining Elixirs.

He had now filled the third Gourd.

All that was left was to enhance his Spirit and Physical Body to break through the bottleneck and advance to the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment.

The others no longer paid Jiang Man any mind. There was nothing worth watching.

Who would waste their time watching someone destined to fail?

"It’s early in the twelfth month now. Late in the second month is about two and a half months away. We’ll meet again soon, and then we can check the real rankings. How about a bet? We’ll see whose rank is higher—yours, after all your sleepless nights, or mine?" the man beside him asked Jiang Man.

Jiang Man’s interest was suddenly piqued. "How much Spiritual Source?"

The man smiled and said, "We’ll go by rank. For the Top 50, the stake is five thousand. For the Top 40, six thousand. For the Top 30, seven thousand. For the Top 20, ten thousand. For the Top 10, fifteen thousand.

"Within these ranking brackets, whoever has the lower rank pays the other the Spiritual Source. How about it?

"For example, if I’m rank twenty-one and you’re rank twenty-two, we’re both in the top thirty bracket, so you’d pay me seven thousand."

Jiang Man thought for a moment. "What about first place?"

’Though first place is truly impossible.’

’If there’s anyone at Foundation Establishment Perfection here this time, I don’t stand a chance.’

’I’m at a disadvantage for being young.’

"You really dare to dream. First place is twenty thousand," the man said.

Jiang Man accepted the bet.

"I’m number sixty-six. What about you?" the man, number sixty-six, asked, taking out his Token.

Certain that he was about to leave, Jiang Man took out his Token and said, "Number 210."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he chose to leave the Secret Realm directly.

He even gave up on recording his progress.

After all, he didn’t know how.

’Rather than stay and wait to record my progress, it’s better to get out and ask the Old Yellow Ox.’

’No point wasting time.’

Number Sixty-six was somewhat surprised as he watched Jiang Man leave.

He had only meant to tease the guy, to see how far his foolish pride would take him.

He never thought he would agree to the bet so happily.

Not only that, but he turned out to be the recently famous Number 210.

For a moment, he felt quite awkward, since he had been chatting with him about Number 210 at the very beginning.

But after carefully sensing his aura, he discovered...

’Number 210 is nothing special.’

’He doesn’t live up to his reputation.’

「In a quaint courtyard.」

Meng Qiewei sat in the courtyard, sipping plain water and gazing at the drooping crabapple blossoms.

Just then, a ball of light appeared in her hand.

But she was thinking about what she should say.

However, before she could speak, the ball of light inexplicably vanished.

Then, footsteps sounded from outside.

Qing Dai entered the courtyard and said softly, "Miss, the people from the Immortal Sect are here again."

"Looking for me?" Meng Qiewei asked casually.

"Yes. They said they would only take up an incense stick’s worth of your time," Qing Dai reported truthfully.

"Men or women?" Meng Qiewei asked.

"Two Fairies, and one of them should be a senior from the Immortal Sect," Qing Dai said.

"Does she know me?" Meng Qiewei asked.

"She should," Qing Dai replied.

’But then again,’ she thought, ’how could someone who comes to do a check not know you?’

’Not knowing you could easily lead to trouble.’

Meng Qiewei looked at Qing Dai and said, "She knows me and still dares to come interrogate me? Go back and tell her that."

Qing Dai could tell that her lady’s mood was even worse today.

She immediately nodded and agreed.

She started walking outside.

But soon, Qing Dai returned.

She brought back two boxes. "Miss, these are gifts from the Immortal Sect."

Qing Dai opened the first box. "These are tea leaves from the Immortal Sect. It is said that their entire sect’s annual production is no more than a hundred pounds."

Meng Qiewei frowned. "Send it back."

"Miss, please look at the second one. The Immortal Sect heard of your marriage and sent this wedding gift especially for you." Qing Dai opened the second box.

Inside was a Brocade Bag.

"What is this?" Meng Qiewei asked.

"It is said to be a Brocade Bag that your mother once requested from the Immortal Sect, to ensure you could marry happily and live a long life with the Young Master," Qing Dai answered.

Meng Qiewei frowned and remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "Let them in."

After Qing Dai left, Meng Qiewei summoned the ball of light again and said softly, "Husband, they’re bullying me."