Inside his stone house, Ye Mo reflected conscientiously.
"In these 2 months I can only prepare myself and grow to the best of my ability. Outside, danger lurks at every corner, the 4th layer is just the beginning, I can't relax."
"To travel safely in the central lands, the minimum is the Foundation Establishment Realm. I'm still far from it, but I'm only going to the mountains near Azure Water City, and since Wei Leng was hunting there in the past, I shouldn't face many problems."
Ye Mo knew the world was far from peaceful. Although he enjoyed a safe environment at the Tiger Martial Institute where he could cultivate in peace, it was all just appearances.
More than their strength or their low profile, institutions were affiliated with sects and also used their name as another layer of protection.
Without this, greedy and ambitious cultivators wouldn't be able to resist the appeal of their storage or their martial arts, and martial institutes were bound to fall at some point.
In the Tiger Martial Institute's case, they were affiliated with the Raging Saber Sect.
However, even the mid-sized Raging Saber Sect had to pay a tribute each year to one of the hegemon of the central lands to prosper.
It was all a small equilibrium between forces seeking relationships and protection to create this semblance of peace.
It required just one link to break for the rest to crumble as well.
In Azure Water City alone, although on the outside it seemed fine and unassuming travelers would not notice it, underwater, it was full of plots, cruelty, and war between clans vying for resources.
"You tell me he attained the 4th layer already?" Hong Li exclaimed in surprise as he looked at elder Chen.
"Yes, I felt it was strange as well when I saw him that's why I thought I should notify you."
In the dean quarters, Hong Li pondered for a short time and reached a conclusion.
"With his rank 2 talent, breaking through the 4th layer this fast is very unlikely. He must have used external help."
"The most plausible are Spirit Qi pills." Hong Li was a powerful Inner Core Realm cultivator and the dean for more than twenty years.
With just a brief moment of reflection, he was able to dig out the truth.
The advantages of Spirit Qi pills are clear to all, and to push through your cultivation, they are the most affordable for a disciple.
"But to reach this level, he must have consumed them massively in a short time, only a fool would do that." Elder Chen said in doubt.
How could someone be so short-sighted to ruin his future for a momentary surge in his cultivation?
The impurities of Spirit Qi pills and the danger of cultivating with them were common knowledge for every cultivator.
Their use was in a gradual intake, consuming only one between certain intervals of time and letting the body eliminate the impurities before trying to take another.
Who would still dare swallow them like nothing?
"You're right, moreover I know he never left the institute since he joined us, and none of the Encompassing Washing pills have been retrieved from the storage in the meantime."
"Pursuing a short glory by ruining your prospects are the signs of small men." Hong Li said in disdain.
Originally he had great expectations for Ye Mo.
On the arena, he fought like a hellhound and Hong Li was reminded of himself in his youth.
However, the news of his rank 2 talent was a heavy blow, and he who already saw himself forging Ye Mo into a powerful expert that would bring honor to his name turned disappointed.
The higher the aspirations, the harder the fall.
Hong Li has been trying to find a good disciple for some time now, but in vain. He couldn't take members of clans or families of cultivators, as they were very loyal to their relatives and wouldn't completely devote themselves to his teachings.
Ma Shinfei was also a good match, but he was already the disciple of the flame grandmaster.
He wanted someone with good talent and a great battle sense. Someone that wouldn't accept defeat no matter what and could turn the tides during a fight with both his fists and his brain.
In the end his hopes were crushed, and he could only clench his fists in dismay and consternation.
"Hmph, he's just a rank 2 talent after all, this sort of reaction has been seen many times when youths can't accept their lack of potential and try by any means to attract our attention. This is the nature of humans to demonstrate their superiority over their peers. Only by proving themselves to others would they find meaning in their lives."
"In the end, everyone has clear limits and once he understands the futility of his actions, it will be too late."
Now that Hong Li learned Ye Mo was reckless enough to cultivate through Spirit Qi pills, he completely forsaked him.
What I thought was a rough gem was finally just a shiny pebble on the riverbank...
Even if per chance he was able to get his hands on one of the few Encompassing Washing pills transiting in the city, it would only be a dark blue one so he could only use low-tier Spirit Qi pills.
By now his body should have built up great resistance towards them, and by relying on his hard work alone, compared to those who slowly raised their cultivation step by step, he would be no match.
Hong Li shook his head in pity as he cast this matter to the back of his mind.
...
Sitting on his red mat, Ye Mo swallowed a mid-tier Spirit Qi pill as he revolved the Black Vortex cultivation technique.
"I will cultivate during the day and train with my battle skills at night."
"My house is isolated from the rest of the disciple's district, few members pass by during the day and almost none at night. Coupled with the darkness, I will be able to train my skills without revealing anything."
Ye Mo wanted to raise his abilities sharply before departing. Although this mission is not supposed to be difficult, once you fall into danger, it's too late for regret.
In this world there are no second chances. You can only count on yourself to escape a predicament.
Ye Mo barely left his seclusion a few days ago that he already returned to an intense training regimen.
The day he would cultivate through the Black Vortex and the assistance of mid-tier Spirit Qi pills and the night he would practice Shadow Walk and Cyclone Kick.
It was a very dull life and few rare individuals could endure it, especially at this age where they would crave adventures and making a name for themselves.
Bearing the solitude, the isolation, and the lack of stimulation was extremely difficult particularly when you were the student of an institute. With the status came wealth and power, so every once in a while, students would go to the city and make full use of it.
Bonding with others and romancing beautiful damsels were the way to truly enjoy life for many people.
However, for someone who spent more than half his life all alone, loneliness was already a part of himself.
Ye Mo witnessed, smuggling, murders and human traffic on a regular basis. Surrounded by the villainy of humans, his heart grew cold long ago.
What is friendship? Just weaklings banding together to hide their own shortcomings, thinking two hands beat one fist. But in a land where an individual could beat a thousand, only personal strength mattered.
What is love? Only cowards who can't stand solitude. Afraid to end up alone, they would forsake their own objectives for momentary pleasure, losing their rationality and adding another burden to themselves as prolonging their bloodline would become their greatest accomplishment.
Fame and glory? Merely background noises. Feeling anger or sadness when criticized and joy or pride when flattered. Only living through others' eyes. Those were the most pitiful.
These are mortal affairs, insignificant, only there to lure the weak-willed away from the true path.
Infinite power, invincibility—this was something worth pursuing!
Compared to my lofty ambition, what is the worth of such allures?
In front of absolute strength, nothing remains.
Fighting gods and demons, humans and beasts, overturning heaven and earth, drenching the world in blood!
No attach, no weaknesses!
Power above all else!
A true demon!
In the dark room, a demonic blaze shone in Ye Mo's eerie black eyes.
A month later, Ye Mo stood at the back of his house, in the dead of the night, surrounded by trees.
The wind blew hard, and many leaves continually flew around him before falling on the ground.
With a movement of his legs, the wind was whipped as afterimages of his kicks surrounded him.
At this moment, his feet seemed surreal as they moved at unprecedented speed.
After an instant he stopped.
Although brown leaves constantly littered the ground, in a radius of ten feet around him, there was nothing but verdant grass dancing in the wind.
"The Liu clan's martial arts seem to emphasize minimal strength for maximum speed."
"With speed comes numbers and with numbers comes additional damage." Ye Mo commented in understanding.
It was the second one he trained in, and like Wind Flow, it focused much on speed.
When the kicks reach you, the leg would have already been retracted, and a second wave would follow as fast as the first.
After two months, in the morning.
The light rays pierced the sky as the sun could be seen slowly rising on the horizon.
Ye Mo got up from the red mat as the Black Vortex dissipated in his dantian.
From his house he could hear quick steps and noisy chatter as he put on his sleeveless brown suit.
The day for the Tiger Martial Institute's half-year assessment began!