Jiang Man was now number one in the Yunqian Bureau.

Many people didn’t know him, but they all wanted to.

So, on his way to the Sixth Courtyard, Jiang Man noticed people gathered in small groups, discussing something.

When they saw Jiang Man, they immediately looked over.

But they quickly averted their gaze, not daring to look at him directly.

This was Jiang Man’s experience the entire way.

He couldn’t help but sigh. ’These people are wasting so much time, spending it all on idle chatter.’

’Wouldn’t it be better to use it for cultivation?’

As he neared the Sixth Courtyard, there was finally no one around.

But Fang Yong blocked his path.

"Young Master Fang, you were looking for me?" Jiang Man asked.

Fang Yong gave Jiang Man some Spiritual Source, then bowed his head slightly and said, "My apologies for the past."

Jiang Man was taken aback and glanced at the Spiritual Source.

’One thousand?’

’This guy is rich too?’

He felt a bit upset. ’Logically, he should be the poorest one.’

’But on second thought, I owe him more than three thousand.’ That made him feel even worse.

At that moment, Fang Yong continued, "You don’t have to pay me back for the elixir from before either."

Hearing this, Jiang Man paused, then said with a straight face, "Don’t be silly, Young Master Fang. It’s better to resolve animosity than to create it. I’d already forgotten everything that happened."

’Almost five thousand Spiritual Source. That’s way more generous than Li Yuan.’

’Li Yuan is so stingy.’

’I’ve never met such a stingy young master.’

When Fang Yong fought, he exuded the aura of a chosen prodigy; when he apologized, he did so with the extravagance of a wealthy young master.

After that, Fang Yong left, looking as dejected as if he’d lost his entire fortune.

’But come to think of it, what did Fang Yong even do?’

After becoming number one, Jiang Man hadn’t bothered to recall the details. The road ahead was long, and he rarely dwelled on the past.

When he arrived at the courtyard, Xiaopang immediately ran over. "Brother Jiang, I have two pieces of bad news."

Jiang Man was taken aback. ’Bad news?’

’Are you inheriting the family business and being forced to marry and take concubines?’

Before Jiang Man could dwell on it, Xiaopang blurted out, "I heard from my father and the others that people have figured out why your Spiritual Qi is so dense, Brother Jiang."

Jiang Man breathed a sigh of relief. ’Oh, so that’s all it is.’

Still, he was curious what conclusion they had reached.

"They investigated your past, Brother Jiang, and reached a conclusion," Xiaopang said seriously. "Your being in last place for two years, doing nothing, was all part of a plan."

"Because if you want to make your Spiritual Qi dense, the first requirement is to cultivate your Qi Refining Skill to the highest Realm."

"If you cultivate like that, your Cultivation will advance by leaps and bounds. Not only that, but your Spiritual Qi will also be denser and purer than others in the same Realm."

"Within the same Realm, it’s entirely possible to fight three opponents at once without running out of energy."

"So they’re saying that you hid your true abilities for two years, Brother Jiang, just so you could wait for your Qi Refining Skill to reach its peak and stun everyone."

Jiang Man wasn’t surprised.

This sort of thing was easy enough to figure out. The only shame was that no one had come to ask him about it.

’Otherwise, I could have earned some Spiritual Source.’

He had known his Spiritual Qi was dense ever since his fight with Chang Qiweng. ’How can the absorption capacity of the Qi Refining Ninth Layer even be compared to that of the First Layer?’

Besides, everyone is different.

Even if they followed his path, they could never replicate his achievements.

As for "enduring hardships for two years to make a stunning debut in the third"...

...that was complete nonsense.

’Back then, I was just genuinely stupid.’

Then, Jiang Man asked about the second piece of bad news.

At the question, Xiaopang looked grief-stricken. "A while ago, a fire started in my room," he said. "It burned half of the books you gave me, Brother Jiang. Luckily, most of the content is still there, and I’ve already memorized the parts that were lost."

"Otherwise, I would have suspected my father set the fire to stop me from advancing to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer."

Jiang Man had been wondering what could be so bad.

He then handed Xiaopang the third book.

Xiaopang’s face lit up with joy. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

He asked if he could reach the Qi Refining Fourth Layer by August if he kept up his cultivation.

Jiang Man gave an affirmative answer.

According to the Old Yellow Ox, Xiaopang would be able to advance to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer in another month or so.

If he hadn’t been so listless for the first two years, with so many resources at his disposal, reaching the Qi Refining Sixth Layer or even the Qi Refining Seventh Layer would have been no problem.

Of course, if he were willing to spend three times the resources, switch from Spirit Gathering Pills to cultivating in the Spirit Gathering Hall, and then double the intensity...

...Xiaopang could also become a Qi Refining Eighth or Ninth Layer Cultivator.

But that was on one condition: he would need a cultivation plan personally designed by the Old Yellow Ox.

Without a good enough cultivation plan, the resources required would naturally be much higher.

As more people gathered, Jiang Man noticed that many of them were glancing his way, whether intentionally or not.

But they didn’t dare to meet his gaze.

The radiance of being number one was too bright to look at directly.

Especially since the person standing here wasn’t just number one in the courtyard, but also Cyan Cloud First, first in the Six Pavilions, and first in the entire Yunqian Bureau.

He was the number one of his generation.

Soon, it was time for the lecture.

Mr. Fu looked at the crowd and said, "To be honest, I’m a bit surprised myself. I never thought the Sixth Courtyard could produce such a prodigy."

"You should all feel fortunate. Those of you who couldn’t find work before can go and try again."

"As long as you aren’t too terrible yourselves, you’ll have a chance to stay in the city."

Being a Student Cultivator from the same courtyard as the Yunqian Bureau’s number one sometimes had its advantages.

So, all other things being equal, it would help them stand out.

After that, Mr. Fu said a great deal more.

When the time was nearly up, he left.

After he left, a few people approached Jiang Man, offered him three hundred Spiritual Source, and said, "We’re in your debt."

Jiang Man was surprised. ’I took care of him?’

But he accepted it anyway. "It was my pleasure."

After that, more people came one after another to give him Spiritual Source.

All of them said the same thing about being in his debt.

Some gave two hundred, others one hundred.

But Jiang Man didn’t look down on the smaller amounts.

He accepted every single one.

’Although I have no idea how I supposedly looked out for them, as long as they feel like I did, that’s good enough.’

’Can’t let their kind intentions go to waste, after all.’