Chapter 20: Counterfeit

"Additionally, starting today, I will accelerate the pace of the morning cultivation basics class to save you as much time as possible, giving you more time for cultivation."

"If you feel you can’t keep up with the lesson pace, speak up. I’ll invite your parents to come and process your withdrawal."

Su Jin and the other students stared blankly.

"Master Liu, if you say that, who dares claim they’re falling behind?"

"Also, our first-year cohort has six classes. The martial classes spend their first three years focusing solely on foundational training and do not assess Qi Refining cultivation base. The other five classes—we have the fewest students who’ve broken through to Qi Refining Level One. Others already have seven or eight, or five or six."

"Our class has only four."

"I believe a good drum doesn’t need repeated strikes—I won’t waste words."

"You who should be striving to break through won’t keep making me hassle you daily, will you?"

"Isn’t that right, Su Linyuan, Yang Guan? How many more days will you dawdle before breaking through?"

Master Liu said, dissatisfied.

In her view, Su Linyuan and Yang Guan’s talents should be comparable to Su Yunhu’s. But Su Yunhu has already broken through, while they’re still stuck.

What are you thinking?

Hiding your true ability?

Why hide your ability in the clan school?

Don’t the elders in the clan school protect you from being suppressed?

Su Linyuan and Yang Guan both lowered their heads.

"Don’t conceal your cultivation speed or your talent in the clan school. Those with ability must show it. If you don’t reveal your potential and capability, how will the clan school take greater notice of you and grant you better treatment and support?"

"Take Su Wuji and the other three—had they not broken through to Qi Refining Level One, how would the school have given them expensive first-rank superior Spirit Gathering Arrays?"

After speaking, Master Liu announced the continuation of class: cultivation basics.

In first year, they had only one academic subject: cultivation basics.

The instructor was Master Liu herself.

If she wanted to teach quickly, she could; if she wanted to teach slowly, ensuring every student understood clearly, she could do that too.

But now, pressured by the imminent opening of the Hong Tong Secret Realm, she could only silently abandon those two students with abysmal comprehension.

Regardless of whether they could keep up, Master Liu naturally sped up her teaching. By ten a.m., she declared class dismissed—half an hour earlier than usual.

After lunch, Su Jin and the other three went directly to the backup classroom.

Only they four were using it now.

Su Cheng walked in and asked, "Did everyone bring spirit stones?"

"Didn’t bring any," said Su Yunhu.

"Didn’t even know we needed to," added Su Jin.

"We only found out this morning the school was distributing Spirit Gathering Arrays—why would we bring spirit stones?" Su Wuji rolled his eyes.

"I brought some—I even brought extra. I can lend you mine, but tomorrow you must bring your own to return them," Su Cheng smiled.

"Impressive," Su Yunhu gave Su Cheng a thumbs-up.

"Thank you for thinking of us ahead of time. We’ll definitely bring spirit stones tomorrow," Su Jin smiled faintly.

"Don’t worry, we’ll bring them tomorrow," Su Wuji grinned. "Didn’t expect we’d get to experience the Spirit Gathering Array’s power today—hahaha."

"By the way, how many spirit stones do you plan to borrow?" Su Cheng asked cheerfully.

"I need one," Su Jin said immediately.

"You’re going to activate a first-rank inferior Spirit Gathering effect?" Su Wuji exclaimed. "I think you could handle at least a first-rank middle-grade effect. Isn’t first-rank inferior too weak? The spiritual energy gathered would be too little. Besides, activating first-rank middle-grade would let us cultivate faster."

"Have you ever used a Spirit Gathering Array before?" Su Jin asked.

"No. But first-rank inferior is the worst tier, right? With our talent, shouldn’t we at least activate first-rank middle-grade?" Su Wuji said smugly.

"Try it and see. My niece is Qi Refining Level Three and only activates first-rank middle-grade. I’m only Qi Refining Level One—I think first-rank inferior is enough."

"If too much spiritual energy gathers but I can’t absorb it, and it just leaks away—that’s a waste of spirit stones," Su Jin said, visibly pained.

Su Wuji: "..."

"Then I’ll borrow one too," Su Yunhu said quickly.

Su Cheng lent them each one stone, then took out one for herself—clearly planning to match Su Jin and the others.

Su Wuji: "Then I’ll borrow one for now. If it’s not enough, I’ll borrow more."

Su Cheng nodded.

Everyone received a Spirit Gathering Array set of ten pieces: one main array disc for control, one secondary main disc for inserting spirit stones.

Eight auxiliary discs, assembled according to instructions, formed a transparent dome.

To Su Jin’s eyes, the dome’s shape resembled a little Wu Tian.

Could this be another counterfeit?

As she stepped inside, Su Jin immediately sensed a slight increase in spiritual energy concentration inside the dome. Hmm—the effect was decent; it had already begun automatically drawing in surrounding spiritual energy.

Su Jin picked up a nearby cushion, sat cross-legged on it, closed her eyes, and began cultivation.

Inside the dome, her cultivation of the Green Wood Eternal Spring Art did accelerate slightly.

Previously, the time to condense one thread of magic power now allowed her to condense one and a half threads. Her cultivation speed increased, but she felt the dome’s absorption rate was even faster.

If she continued at this pace, she’d consume less spiritual energy than the dome gathered—and the surplus would surely leak away, wasted.

Su Jin thought: If only I could cultivate two arts simultaneously.

Then she felt her spiritual sense split in two.

One part controlled her body’s cultivation of the Green Wood Eternal Spring Art; the other controlled her soul force, cultivating the Great Expansion Soul Refining Art within her mind sea.

Cultivating the Great Expansion Soul Refining Art also consumed spiritual energy.

Her spiritual energy consumption rate doubled again, gradually reaching eighty percent of the dome’s absorption rate.

Finally, there was less waste.

Su Jin cultivated peacefully.

When her meridians reached their limit, she immediately stopped cultivating and dismantled the Spirit Gathering Array. Only about one-tenth of the spirit stone had been consumed—it could still be used eight or nine more times.

She had condensed five full threads of magic power. At this pace, she might break through to Qi Refining Level Two by month’s end.

Her Great Expansion Soul Refining Art also felt close to breaking through Soul Refining Level One; since the Golden Tong Wood was already a physical object, she sensed her progress was far faster than the scripture described.