It was Fang Lang's first encounter with a commoner genius—Ni Wen's—cultivation state and also his first time feeling what it was like to be naturally gifted.
There was a rumble in his mind and he saw a faint silhouette before him. The phantom was seated across Fang Lang—its movement and breathing mimicked his.
In the next moment, Fang Lang felt his spiritually insensitive body tremble. A strong suction force was forming within his body.
The spiritual energy within the spirit crystal flowed like a river and rushed into him.
It took less than 15 minutes for Fang Lang to absorb the remaining 90% of spiritual energy. Even the tiny wisps of spiritual energy present in the air were attracted to him.
Crack!
The spirit crystal in his palm made a cracking sound when all the spiritual energy was drained.
Fang Lang opened his eyes. Without hesitation, he reached for another spirit crystal.
Originally, Fang Lang had assumed the spiritual energy absorption rate was the biggest difference between the naturally talented and the average student. However, when he channeled the energy as per the Tang Dynasty's Sword Scripture, he realized the actual difference was in the way the meridians reacted to the cultivation methods.
The difference was a sizable chasm.
A white core and a yellow core were as different as night and day.
The once obscure parts of the scripture became clear to Fang Lang—as if a mental block was lifted, knowledge poured into him.
Soon after, the second spirit crystal was completely drained.
Whoosh!
Fang Lang opened his eyes when he felt an aura surrounding him. There was pressure building up in his skull and it threatened to bore a hole through the crown of his head.
In the end, the pressure manifested in the form of spiraling green smokes.
He exhaled a breath of stale air.
A breakthrough in cultivation!
Fourth-grade sword mastery!
Fang Lang had been edging toward this breakthrough but if he relied on his own abilities alongside the two spirit crystals, it would have taken him at least a month to reach the fourth grade.
The Imperial Examination was a month away. The breakthrough would have meant little in the grand scheme of things.
"Less than 30 minutes to absorb two low-grade spirit crystals… Is this the power of a genius?" Fang Lang gasped, surprised by the progress.
Once the initial surprise was gone, eagerness took over.
Ni Wen could exhaust five low-grade spirit crystals in two hours and he had 50% of her cultivation speed. If he used the 3X Amplification Card, he could achieve 1.5 times Ni Wen's abilities.
Seven and a half spirit crystals in two hours!
Supersonic speed.
Fang Lang understood why Ni Wen could achieve ninth-grade spell mastery despite the lack of cultivation resources. They had enrolled in the academy three years ago but she was so much further ahead of him in terms of cultivation.
The girl was overambitious!
She was cheating in life!
Fang Lang opened his eyes, a grin stretched across his face. The advantages she had were his to enjoy.
No time to spare, the 3X Amplification Card lasted only six hours. He got back to cultivating.
Of the two resources given by the System, only the spirit crystals were of immediate use. The 500 gold coins would come in handy in the future.
After the breakthrough, Fang Lang followed the Tang Dynasty's Sword Scripture and stabilized the fourth-grade state.
It took him 30 minutes to complete the process. Then, he proceeded to absorb another spirit crystal.
One, two, three…
The remaining three crystals were drained in less than two hours.
Whoosh!
Another familiar rush of energy!
A spiral of green smoke lingered over Fang Lang's head.
Fifth-grade sword mastery!
After consuming three spirit crystals, Fang Lang's sword mastery leveled up!
He opened his eyes and coughed out a breath of smoke that was shaped like a one-meter-long sword.
The fluttering of his green robe stopped. He was flushed and sweat-drenched. The pain in his meridians spread.
The consecutive breakthroughs overloaded his body.
However, the minor side effect was a small price to pay for the leap in progress. A good rest would restore his body. Fang Lang was overjoyed by his rapid advancement.
He stared at the five depleted spirit crystals in dismay.
If he had more spirit crystals, he could easily reach the sixth grade.
Unfortunately, he has a finite supply of crystals and his body needed time to rest and recuperate.
A thought came to his mind. Fang Lang brought up the System display.
…
Host: Fang Lang
Cultivation Discipline: Fifth-Grade Sword Disciple
Level: LV1
Experience: 500/1000
Core: 36 (White)
Cultivation Resource: 500 gold coins (usage limited to cultivation)
Items: 3X Amplification Card (2)
Binding Partner: Ni Wen (50%)
Sole Passive Ability: Additional rewards may be granted when the host bonds with the binding partner over cultivation.
…
Fang Lang's eyes were drawn to the experience statistic.
500 experience points? Where did those come from?
He had just refined five low-grade spirit crystals. Perhaps each spirit crystal provided 100 experience points?
Fang Lang discovered something new about the System's level advancement.
Happiness grew in his chest.
After the System leveled up, he was allowed to bind more partners?
Binding to Ni Wen already gave him an edge in terms of cultivation speed. If he had more than one geniuses bound, what was the limit?
Expectations were abound as Fang Lang set his sights on the upcoming Imperial Examination.
If he wanted to meet more geniuses, he would have to perform well in the Imperial Examination.
The cream of the crop would be selected by the sects based on their examination results. To have a better chance of binding more geniuses, Fang Lang would have to join one of the top-tier sects.
Thoughts ran through his head as he changed into a clean set of green academy robes. Although he understood the basic concept of leveling up, he was unsure if the experience points had to be gained through the cultivation resources provided by the System or if the experience points came from absorbing any spirit crystal.
The answer would remain unknown for the moment. Fang Lang patted his uniform and kept his 500-gold-coin-heavy purse up his sleeve before leaving the room.
He entered the main hall and found his father and Uncle Zhao having breakfast.
There were some plain vegetable dishes to go with the white porridge—the food was plain.
Old Fang slurped his porridge. He was surprised when Fang Lang entered the hall.
"Lang'er, you're an hour late today," Old Fang said.
He was aware of Fang Lang's fervor for cultivation but there was nothing they could do about his core. He pitied his son but did not hinder his pursuit of cultivation.
Fang Lang replied, "Woke up in a good state today so I spent more time cultivating."
He grabbed a meat bun from the table and took a bite. He gave Uncle Zhao a polite smile before turning to his father, "Old Fang, how many spirit crystals do we have here?"
Uncle Zhao slowed down his porridge consumption and gave Fang Lang a look. He noticed the change in Fang Lang's aura.
"Spirit crystals? The Imperial Examination is in a month… Lang'er, you want the crystals for a final push? Fine, although there's little hope for you in the examination, as your father, I shall support you!"
Old Fang took another slurp of his porridge. He licked the chopsticks and said, "There are ten low-grade spirit crystals in storage. You can have two of them, they should last you a month. I'll get someone to deliver them to your room."
Fang Lang gave Old Fang an incredulous look. Then, he smirked and said, "Two? You call that support? Are you even my real father? I want all ten of them."
Fang Lang did not wait for a reaction. He left with the meat bun in his mouth, his green robe fluttering as he walked away. He headed for Luojiang Academy.
"Ten spirit crystals? Your white core will take a whole year to drain ten crystals!"
Old Fang was confused by his son's statement. He ate another mouthful of porridge.
The portly Uncle Zhao had some thoughts about the issue. He said with a smile, "Yesterday when I saw my nephew, he was at the peak of third-grade sword mastery. Today, he appears to have reached the fifth grade. To gain two grades in a day… I believe he can exhaust the ten spirit crystals at this rate."
Hearing Old Zhao's words, Old Fang was stunned.
"My son… He…"
The sudden rush of emotion made his spit out the porridge.
…
At Luojiang Academy, seventh study hall, third floor.
Fang Lang was on the prayer mat when the bell rang, signifying the start of class.
The teacher in charge of the third floor sat on a prayer mat behind the high table. He flipped open the book and banged the gavel. The lecture began.
Seated among the students, Fang Lang pursed his lips. His attention was elsewhere.
Ni Wen kept a low profile. Coming from a less fortunate background, she avoided the rich kids. Despite studying on the same floor, Fang Lang rarely interacted with the genius.
If it were not for the partner-binding, Fang Lang might have never known the aloof genius despite sharing three years of schooling together.
After the Imperial Examination, they would have each moved on with their lives and never meet again.
Fang Lang's gaze swept through the rows of students and fell on Ni Wen.
The young girl was kneeling on the prayer mat. She had delicate features that promised beauty in the future. The lack of a balanced diet gave rise to a pale complexion. The green academy robes hung loosely on her small frame.
The young girl had her head up—the fair skin of her neck visible—as she listened attentively to the lecture. Long eyelashes fluttered as she took in the teacher's words.
Fang Lang's stare did not go unnoticed. Ni Wen's acute spiritual sense alerted her of the attention. She brushed aside some stray hair and looked up. Their eyes met across the room.
The eye contact startled Ni Wen. She felt a jolt of electricity in her chest.
There was a sense of familiarity when she looked at Fang Lang, as if he was a good friend of many years.
It was the first time Ni Wen felt like this. A blush rose to her cheeks and like a startled deer, she broke eye contact.
She buried the odd feeling in her chest with some trepidation. Her mother's advice echoed in her head, 'Focus on studying and avoid the rich boys in the academy. Common folk like us can't afford to mingle with them.' Although the academy granted protection over the commoners, the rich would prevail in a battle of attrition.
Fang Lang's stare made Ni Wen wary. She was worried her mother's warning would come true.
'Don't look at me. Don't look at me…'
Ni Wen shrunk into her ill-fitting green robe. She bit her lip and prayed for trouble to leave her be.
However, the sense of familiarity deep within lingered. She could not resist turning back…
Their eyes met again. Fang Lang's finger tapped the desk. An easygoing and charming smile graced his lips, as if he had already counted on her to turn back.
Ni Wen had a shocked expression.
'Stop looking at me!'
The gentlemanly smile terrified her.
'Stop… Stop smiling at me!'